Learning to Wait: Lessons From the Life of Abrahamනියැදිය

Waiting

"So Sarai said to Abram, “The Lord has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my slave; perhaps I can build a family through her.” Abram agreed to what Sarai said." Genesis 16:2 (NIV)

At first glance, the story of Hagar and the birth of Ishmael seems to challenge Paul’s portrayal of Abraham in Romans 4. In Genesis 16, does Abraham really look like a man who isn’t feeling “weak in his faith” (Romans 4:19)? Did he truly experience a faith that never doubts or wavers (Romans 4:20)?

After receiving God’s promise of a vast family through which the world would be blessed, Abraham waited 10 years for God to do what he said (Genesis 16:3). When his wife Sarah (now 76 years old) still had not conceived, they decided to take matters into their own hands. The disastrous consequences of this decision rippled through Abraham’s family during his lifetime, and for centuries to come.

Waiting is profoundly challenging. Anxiety often drives us to create our own solutions and to attempt to fulfill God’s promises through human strength and strategies. Abraham’s story perfectly illustrates the depth of the human struggle to trust God’s timing, especially when it seems delayed.

Centuries after Abraham, Isaiah prophesied the ultimate solution to our restless waiting: the birth of a Son called the “Prince of Peace,” whose kingdom would be marked by endless peace (Isaiah 9:6-7). This promised Prince—Jesus—would not only fulfill God’s promises to Abraham but would offer his own peace as a free gift for all who trust in him (John 14:27). This peace, Jesus promises, can be experienced in the midst of any fear and hardship, and even in a season of waiting (John 16:33).

Practice:

This week, intentionally choose to wait longer for something than you need to. Actively engage and stay present by not taking out your phone during this time of waiting. You could:

• Choose the longest checkout line in the grocery store
• Wait for another person to join you before pressing the pedestrian crosswalk button (or for all the cars to pass)
• Wait an hour before responding to a text or email
• Delay a purchase of something you’ve been wanting
• Listen fully to someone without interrupting or planning your response

As you engage in this spiritual practice, become an observer of your own heart and the dynamics of waiting:

• Did you find it easy or difficult to extend your time of waiting?
• As you waited, what feelings arose inside of you?
• As you waited, how did you interact with the people around you?
• Did you learn anything about peace through this exercise?

Prayer:

Ask God to reveal areas where you are currently struggling to wait for God and the fulfillment of his promises. Ask God to show you the reasons why you find it hard to wait in these areas, and what he might be forming in you through this season of waiting. In what practical ways can you receive the gift of peace that Jesus is offering you at this time?