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Let me start with an absolute. We can trust God to do what He said He would do.
Numbers 23:19 states: God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it (ESV)? This verse in another translation states: God is no mere human! He doesn’t tell lies or change his mind. God always keeps his promises (CEV).
Keep this scripture in mind as we consider the Biblical account involving Abram and Sarai. Side note, God later changed Abram’s name to Abraham, and Sarai to Sarah. With that, let’s move on…
Abram and Sarai had no children. Abram was concerned that a servant in his house would be his heir. Genesis 15:4-6 states: And behold, the word of the Lord came to him: “This man shall not be your heir; your very own son shall be your heir.” And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” And he believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness (ESV).”
What God said to Abram may have seemed far-fetched. He was advanced in age. So was his wife, Sarai. Despite this, Abram believed God. But then, there is an interesting turn.
Genesis 16:1-4 states: Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. She had a female Egyptian servant whose name was Hagar. And Sarai said to Abram, “Behold now, the Lord has prevented me from bearing children. Go in to my servant; it may be that I shall obtain children by her.” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai. So, after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Sarai, Abram’s wife, took Hagar the Egyptian, her servant, and gave her to Abram her husband as a wife. And he went in to Hagar, and she conceived. And when she saw that she had conceived, she looked with contempt on her mistress (ESV).
God said they would have a child. But yet they were still childless. So was something wrong with Sarai’s idea? Yes.
First, God does not need our help or our compromise to bring His word to pass. Jeremiah 32:17 states: Ah, Lord God! It is you who have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm! Nothing is too hard for you (ESV).
Second, God is a faithful God. 2 Timothy 2:13 states: If we are faithless, He remains faithful [true to His word and His righteous character], for He cannot deny Himself (AMP).
Waiting for a promise from God to be fulfilled may not always be quick or easy. Days of waiting may turn into weeks. Weeks into months. Perhaps, months into years. Even more, there may not be many assurances from God that we are on the right path. What do you do when it just seems crazy to continue waiting? Or when everything within you starts to wonder if God has changed His mind?
As believers, we must know that, on our own, we don’t always have the spiritual stamina to wait well. On our own, we aren’t always able to push beyond what we see with our natural eyes. On our own, we aren’t always able to resist the temptation to figure out a way to make what God said happen. And God knows this!
Hebrews 4:15 states: For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin (ESV).
God is a loving Father who is always there to help us. God is always there to give us the grace we need to trust Him. God is always there to give us the grace we need to accept that, no matter how long it takes, what God promised will come to pass. Just as God said it would.
Except where indicated, scripture references are from the American Standard Version (ASV), Darby Translation (DARBY), or King James Version (KJV) – all public domain.
