After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.” 

Genesis 15:1

Before God changed his name Abram believed God. Before the manifestation of the promise — Abram believed God. Abram chose to believe God, despite what his situation looked like. In life, you must choose to intentionally set your heart and believe God no matter what the situation may look like. You must choose to ignore life’s distractions and fix your focus on Him. Your heart has to stay focused on God’s Promise. Choose to believe what He said. 

At the beginning of Genesis Chapter 15, God appears to Abram in a vision and says, “…Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward.” God addressed Abram’s fear and then God focused on his future. Fear will try to paralyze you. When you’re choosing to walk out the Promises of God, oftentimes, you have to choose to focus on God’s Word instead of listening to the voice of fear. Fear will try to discourage you. Fear will try to debilitate you. Fear will point out your current lack, insecurities and insufficiencies, while God wants to pour and point to your future. God is speaking from the perspective of your future. Speak to your future. Eliminate fear and choose to believe God. Rather than saying, “I will reward you”, God said, “I am your exceeding great reward”. God himself was the guarantee that Abram would not go unrewarded for his faithfulness.

Genesis‬ ‭15:6‬ AMPC puts it this way, “And he [Abram] believed in (trusted in, relied on, remained steadfast to) the Lord, and He counted it to him as righteousness (right standing with God).” Abram chose to believe, trust, rely upon, and remain focused as to what God had promised him.