Last week we met Abraham and Sarah, an elderly couple in the Book of Genesis. In a surprising turn of events, they had a child (Isaac) when they were around 100. Read Genesis 18:1-15 and Genesis 21:1-7 in a couple translations to get a picture of the whole Biblical story of this event.You might want to read it in a couple of versions to see if slight differences in wording and translation spark a new insight. BibleGateway.com is a good resource for looking up multiple versions.
What surprised you in the story? What did you see that
perhaps you never noticed before?
As I noted last week, we are often invited to participate in
“new birth” in our lives. This can be an unexpected and new thing or an
expansion of something we are already doing. I suggested that you think of a
time when God presented you with a surprising opportunity that challenged the
way you planned your life.
Did you see God’s hand in the new birth right away? Or is it
more in looking back that you realize that God’s hand was present in what
happened?
When I look at my married life, I see many times when God’s
hand was in what happened. There have been times, especially in early married life,
when money to pay bills was short and then, at just the right time and in the
right amount, a special job would come up and all would be well.
For Abraham and Sarah, the right time for a son was when
they were nearing the century mark of their lives. That may seem like a rather
late time to start parenting, but it was God’s timing and it was perfect.
It is often a temptation to try and rush God’s hand when we want something to happen. Abraham and Sarah did this by using Hagar (Sarah’s maid) as a surrogate mother earlier in the story. (Genesis 16) That did not work out well. Even though Hagar bore a child, Ishmael, it caused hard feelings between Sarah and Hagar that resulted in the servant being evicted from the camp twice. She ran away before her baby was born and then after Isaac was born Sarah jealously sends her away. (Genesis 21)
God is in even our disastrous missteps and mistakes. God
meets Hagar and provides water and guidance both times. Despite Sarah’s
actions, God’s grace was present. God is also active in our personal failing
and fumbling. When we do wait on God’s timing, the result is always more than
we could have expected.
Birthing a new ministry or career or retirement or any
change requires patience. It requires prayer and listening to God. It may
demand that we set aside our personal timeline and agenda to align with God’s
plan. And sometimes, like Sarah and Abraham, we may give up hope before the
desired outcome happens. Then, God is able to surprise us with an unexpected
outcome!
Next week we’ll consider how we might walk with one another in our discerning and waiting.
