Chances: A 7-Day Devotional by Evan CraftSample

Our dreams and goals are fundamental to who we are as human beings and followers of Christ. When we follow Jesus and fully submit ourselves to Him, we begin to naturally align our hopes and dreams with His. So what happens when we haven’t seen them come to fruition? Abraham is a great example of someone who waited for decades for the dream of becoming a father but didn’t have the patience or faith in His final hours to see God’s promise fulfilled. He and his wife jumped the gun because they didn’t wait on God’s word.

Honestly, it’s understandable that someone would have a hard time believing a woman of Sarah’s age would get pregnant. Barrenness is a deep fear for most couples and in Abraham’s time, having children was of utmost importance. How do you become the father of a nation without any children?

But, Sarah and Abraham disobeyed God. Abraham slept with a concubine and she gave birth to his first son, but not Sarah’s. One can only imagine the bitterness and resentfulness that was planted that day. Sarah eventually tells Abraham to kick out his son Ishmael and the “slave woman” (Gen 21:10). Sounds like a situation that can’t be redeemed, right?

But even in Sarah’s old age, her bewilderment at God’s promise, He still fulfilled His word. How many times have we made mistakes because we couldn’t see the full picture God was painting? His ways are higher than ours. But the beauty in this story is the sovereignty of God. Even when we fall short, fail, or mess up the plan, God is still in control. He gave Abraham and Sarah a chance despite their own failings. Don’t let your mistakes keep you from the promise that God has on your life. He is more than able to redeem what we have lost.