Recently, I started reflecting again on the story of Abraham. I’ve always admired Abraham’s faith. Hebrews 11:8 says that “By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.”

Have you ever wondered how someone can just do that? How was it possible that Abraham was able to head out without a clear destination, without a plan?

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It wasn’t like Abraham had a lot of experience with taking leaps of faith. When God first called Abraham to leave his country (see Genesis 12), Abraham didn’t seem to have a long history with God. After hours, days, and years of reading his story, this is my conclusion: Abraham was simply willing to obey.

I’m not very good with languages, but every once in a while, I enjoy picking up some tiny bits and pieces of Hebrew. The Bible in its original language had a lot of nuances that aren’t very obvious when translated into English. In Hebrew, to be willing is translated to yaal, which also means to be content and pleased. But I was fascinated to discover that yaal can also be translated to mean two other seemingly contradictory things: “to be valuable or profitable,” and “to be foolish.”

This tells me that in the world’s eyes, people who take these blind steps of faith may look foolish, but in God’s eyes, those who are willing, pleased, and content with the challenge of stepping into the unknown, trusting God, and heeding His guidance are the ones heading for the real treasure.

Have you ever taken a seemingly foolish step that turned out to be a great decision? Are you willing to do it again?