Every time I read through the book of Genesis, I have been struck by the character of Abraham’s servant as mentioned in the twenty-fourth chapter of Genesis. In this chapter, the servant is not named but many commentaries point back to the fifteenth chapter of Genesis and think this servant is Eliezer. The essence of my admiration for this man is his unselfishness. In Genesis chapter twenty-four, verse twelve, we have the beginning of his prayer recorded. “And he said, ‘O LORD, God of my master Abraham, please grant me success today and show steadfast love to my master Abraham’” (Gen 24:12 ESV).
Abraham was nearing the end of his life and sent this man to find a wife for his son Isaac, the son of the promise. So, this servant must have shown himself to be faithful in his years of service to Abraham, otherwise, he would not have been chosen. The servant swears an oath to Abraham that he will do exactly as he is told. The servant goes on a very long journey then prays the prayer. The prayer is amazing in that while he does pray for success in his task, his prayer is really for Abraham, and not for himself. I am personally convicted by his unselfishness. I have prayed for success in my job, my duties, my relationships, my health and numerous other things. The operative word in the preceding sentence in ‘my’. This man prayed for success in his task so that Abraham will be blessed. Would I go on a long journey for my boss with an important task and have the same unselfishness? Or would my prayer go something like this: “God, please bless me in this business trip so that I make the sale, impress my boss, get the raise, so I can have more money?”
God blesses the servant and he finds Rebekah, who would go on to be Isaac’s wife. When the servant meets her family, they welcome him warmly and offer him food. Again, if this were me, I would probably figure that I earned a good meal after a long journey and am entitled to some pleasure along the way. It is not so with this servant. He does not decline the food but says in essence, “I will not eat until I have said what I came to say and complete the task that is before me.” The servant is successful, and Rebekah agrees to return with him to be Isaac’s wife. The servant responds with praise, “he bowed himself to the earth before the LORD” (Gen 24:52 ESV). I can learn from the example of this man. I can be more faithful in my duties to be entrusted with more. I can be the kind of man whom another would assign a most important task. I can pray for success in the tasks before me for the benefit of those who I serve. I can fulfill the tasks that are before me to honor my God. I pray then when I am done, I can thank God for His strength in enabling me to be faithful.
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