Even the most spiritual get into places of irrational fear. Just because we have trusted God to pay the water bill and He came through, does not mean we will automatically trust Him from then on. Faith is living and unbelief is constant, so therefore the former has to be exercised daily. It has to be drawn upon through past examples, realizing how God has answered our prayers. However, it must also be worked out regarding the unknown, understanding that each fear we face can take on a whole different complexion.
As with Abraham, it might wrap itself in the fear of King Abimelech. In this instance, we might condemn Abraham for already going through this lesson with the king of Egypt. One might think he would have already learned that it was unnecessary to lie about his wife to protect his own skin (see Genesis 12:10-16). However, for whatever reason in the latter example, the patriarch considered his death not worth the risk.
Faith will always involve death to self. It will always butt up against irrational fear and sometimes it will win. The goal is to eventually conquer all instances. The miracle is that Abraham had no more than two recorded instances of treachery. How many do we have, and like Abraham have we finished writing that part of our history?
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