The Baggage Called Lot

Perhaps Abram was moved by compassion for the fatherless Lot. Maybe Lot was still young and sought his uncle’s mentorship. Possibly some Near East tradition or custom of the time prompted Abram to take Lot. In the absence of his own heir, perhaps Lot was a substitute for the son Abram did not have at the time.

Whatever the reason, Abram felt it necessary to take Lot, a decision with ramifications that echoed well into the future. When Abram, accompanied by Lot, came out of Egypt, the sheer size of their herds was too much for the land. So, Abram offered Lot the option of locations for his herds and Lot selected the choicest lands for himself. Those lands were adjacent to Sodom, where Lot chose to settle despite the renowned wickedness of the city. When Sodom fell in battle and the city’s inhabitants, to include Lot, were taken captive, it was Abram who came to Lot’s rescue. When God decided to destroy Sodom, it is Abram who interceded for the city, the adopted home of his nephew, Lot.

On multiple occasions, Abram had stepped in to guide, protect, provide, and intercede for his nephew. Perhaps all that was fine; after all, that is what family does for each other. But Lot’s presence had become a matter that distracted Abram from the real focus, God’s plan for his life.

Abram’s experience teaches us a lesson about taking on the people and issues in life God did not tell us to carry. We can feel compelled, even obligated to care for a person or engage in a ministry that needs help, but one God did not give us as an assignment. We mean well but that additional person or added work distracts us from our real mission, God’s mission for us. The lesson is difficult. It may even sound callous. But when we carry what God did not task us to take, we endanger our ability to do what He did tell us to do.

Let go of the baggage that is not yours to carry. Focus on the task God gave you to do.