I’ve been thinking about Abraham from the Bible a lot lately. At the beginning of his biblical account when he was still called Abram, God told him he would be a great nation and that he had to leave his hometown of Harran to go to the land God promised him—Canaan. So Abram took his wife, Sarai, and his nephew Lot and set out for the land of Canaan. They roamed from Shechem to Bethel and then toward the Negev before a famine took them to Egypt.

It’s easy to read this and think nothing of it, but if you look at a Bible map to consider their journey, you will notice that this was no small thing. The first leg of the journey was 400 miles!

I have a tiny bit of experience in taking down a campsite to move to a new site before dusk, but that involved six or seven people on vacation. Moving with flocks and herds and people, taking down tents, making food en route, and finding sources of water would have required a fresh dose of trust in God daily for Abram and his crew. Conservative estimates would have them on the road at least 32 days, but if they rested some days or weren’t able to go as far some days, it could have been longer. And that was just to get to the first of several stops!

After moving throughout the land of Canaan, famine took Abram to Egypt. We don’t talk about famines much in our country. Since we have grocery stores and freezers and pantries, we can’t really imagine the predicament Abram was in. When there was no food to be found in Canaan (possibly because of failed crops, insects, or enemies who destroyed them), Abram moved to Egypt.

The trip to Egypt and back would not have made it into his Christmas letter. Abram didn’t know how the Egyptians would react to his beautiful wife, so in desperation, he lied and said she was his sister. His wife ended up in Pharaoh’s palace. God intervened by inflicting Pharaoh and his household with “serious diseases,” resulting in Abram being kicked out of Egypt.

Back in Canaan, Abram showed grace when allowing Lot to choose whatever land he wanted. Lot chose the best land. We don’t know how Abram felt about it, but not long afterward God showed up to renew his promises to Abram.

Abram’s faith faltered when God continued to promise to give him a child despite the fact that his wife could not conceive and both he and Sarai (who God would later call Sarah) were old. Abram went along with his wife’s suggestion to have a child through her servant.

Abram, now Abraham, had to trust God would take care of his son through Sarah’s servant when Sarah insisted they were to be sent away after Sarah’s own son was born. No doubt Abraham loved the other boy a great deal.

And finally, Abraham displayed amazing faith when God told him to sacrifice the son he eventually had with Sarah. After all that time and all the struggle, God asked for the child back, and Abraham didn’t hesitate.

All this is to say Abraham’s life was probably a lot like yours and mine. Trouble and hardship and episodes of doubt were intertwined with other seasons of incredible faith. I love that God showed us all of it, because all too often I falter. I have times when I stand strong in the face of adversity, and other times I crumble just at the thought of it.

And as comforting as it is to see Abraham’s moral failures, it is far more comforting to realize God didn’t leave him despite them. When Abraham shrunk back and his wife ended up in Pharaoh’s palace, God rescued her. When Abraham doubted God’s promise and took matters into his own hands, God didn’t abandon him or Sarah. He continued to walk with them, provide for them, and forgive them while simultaneously providing for Sarah’s servant and the son the servant had through no desire or choice of her own.

Maybe you haven’t had to travel from place to place, but you also haven’t found the church home you’ve always wanted with solid Christian friends to encourage and pray for you. Maybe it’s not a famine that has you on your knees but a terrible job situation that isn’t sustainable. Maybe you haven’t been kicked out of Egypt, but you aren’t invited to a family member’s house to celebrate the holidays. Maybe like Abraham watching Lot get the best, you’ve watched as others got married or conceived or got the job of their dreams while those things or something equally desirable to you have eluded you. This might be one of those no-Christmas-letter years for you or your family, when, like Abraham waiting all those years, there’s nothing to report.

Abraham’s predicaments show an undeniable dependence on God for direction, rescue, provision, and salvation. And they show that God provided, sustained, showed up, and got him through.

And I bet, when you look back, you can say the same.