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Trusting in God's timing

Abram obeys the Lord but faces the reality of his advancing age and his barren wife. Still childless at this point, Abram wonders if God intends the blessings to come through his servant Eliezer.

God responds to Abram’s concerns with revelation and encouragement (Genesis 15:1). Abram is reminded by God that he is his benefactor and will make good on all his promises. But for the first time, he speaks to God and raises questions. In the past, he had merely listened and obeyed.

Abram addresses the central issue of Genesis 15: God's delay in fulfilling his promises. There is a delay and a requirement to wait in hope. The Lord’s answer is swift and direct. He says Eliezer will not be his heir and that a son from his own body will be his heir.

In verse 5, God invites Abram to take a long look and count the number of stars in the sky. It is impossible to number them, and “so shall your offspring be” (v.5). God’s response implies a waiting period.

Abram must trust God to deliver on his promise rather than do what he can to obtain God’s promise.

In Genesis 16, we find 10 years proved too long for Sarai to wait on God’s promise. She decided to bring her own resources and take action to help God keep his promise to Abram. She works to persuade Abram to take her Egyptian slave, Hagar, into his tent to produce an heir since she had no more hope of being a mother at her age.

While Sarai is old and barren, Hagar is young and fertile, and she conceived a son. Sarai’s scheme gives birth to unintended consequences. Firstly, Hagar despises Sarai.

Sarai’s emotions took over and resulted in Hagar's harsh treatment. This shift in the story places procreation rather than companionship as the core purpose of marriage, resulting in negative consequences. The second consequence is that a runaway slave carried Abram’s only conceived and perceived heir-child into the desert—a justified action on Hagar’s part, given the harsh treatment she experienced.

But the final and most long-lasting consequence is that Ishmael, Hagar’s son, became a rival and threat to Sarai and Isaac, the promised son.

The price of choosing not to wait on God, not to believe his promises, and inserting one’s own actions into God’s plans brought devastating consequences. Yet, there is hope even in the most challenging of life’s circumstances and in some of the most unexpected places.

Question for Reflection:

- What’s God’s purpose on the planet today and how might your family be part of his plan?