As I've been studying in Genesis 18:1-15 these last couple of days I've found myself pondering the concept of how often the greater miracle results when we don't get what we want.This is the passage where 3 men came to Abraham when he was camped under some trees and he had them rest while he, Sarah and his servants prepared these men a meal.When Abraham took the food to the men and stayed with them while they ate,the men begin to ask Abraham about Sarah and tell him that by this time next year she'll have a son. Sarah is listening in on the conversation and finds it amusing because by this time Abraham is more than 99 years old and Sarah is more than 90 years old.
This is a passage where we also see God in a human form; it appears that one of the 3 men must have been God Himself. The reason I think this is because in Genesis 18:1 it says that the LORD appeared to Abraham, then it goes on in the following verses to talk about these 3 men, then in the 13th verse it again states what the LORD said to Abraham.
But what really hits me as I read this is that Sarah was expecting to have that baby way back many years before all this. In Genesis 16, when Abraham was 86 years old, Sarah had gotten tired of waiting on God and tried to fulfill His promises to her by having Abraham have a child with Sarah's maid.
As I'm studying these chapters I wonder if part of why God waited so long to fulfill His promise to Abraham and Sarah was so that there would not be any way Abraham and Sarah could claim credit. By the time they had Issac they were so old that it was impossible for them to have children, so it was obvious that it was God making things happen.
Sarah was old, but you don't have to be old to feel worn out. Have you ever felt too tired, worn out, and beaten up by life to believe God can do anything miraculous and wonderful with you? Can you come up with all kinds of reasons why you think God would be past being able to use you?
My experiences have shown me the truth of what Jesus said in Matthew 5:3 (MSG):
“You're blessed when you're at the end of your rope. With less of you there is more of God and his rule.”
Have you ever had a time when it seemed that God had waited to bless you until you'd gotten out of the way?
6 comments:
I'm starting to think that is where I am now. God is saying, "Rest. Let Me do the work." And I'm off trying to find the secrets of the universe and God.
Great post Tracy.
Sometimes we are impatient. If something is meant to be, it will happen on God's timetable. Not ours.
I think about how faithful God is as I look back. How he has fulfilled desires that I thought would never be possible.
Growing up I used to read National Geographic (before they became idiots). I loved the photos of foreign lands. I used to look in the window of a local travel agency - London, Paris, Rome, and Amsterdam. I even joined the Army with a Europe 9 option, hoping to be stationed in Munich.
All my efforts to travel, met with disappointment as I was stationed in Alabama, Georgia, and Missouri.
I had pretty bad car wreck, and as a result I took my settlement and traveled to 42 states and 32 National Parks. It's no way to go -
In the mid 80's I sold my company and took a few months sailing around the Caribbean. I visited 13 island countries.
One day in 1998 I received a prophecy about going to the nations - which was far beyond what I could have imagined for myself. As a result of that life changing word, the Lord opened the doors for a number of mission trips to South America and Europe - all expenses paid by folks investing in the Kingdom of God!
It is interesting how God takes a desire, trains you for it (sometimes with waiting), and then sends you out under His power; when things seem impossible, to do it.
Great blog!
I totally agree with your 3rd commenter...lol.
I love all those miracles God does when there's no way to take the credit, or to try and make logic or reason of it!
Amen sister...We must be patient and let God do his work. He is a on-time God.
Michelle - One of the things I've come to appreciate about you is your sincere heart for God. I have no doubt that He's doing great stuff in your life because you desire Him.
JD & May -Patience is always a challenge for me!
David - It's always encouraging to read how God's worked in the lives of other Believers. As I read what you wrote here I was reminded of a line from a song by a man named Carman:
"the desire is the confirmation that the destination is there, God wouldn't put it in your spirit if it wasn't going nowhere". I really do believe that God made us exactly who we are, with the desires we have, to be used in specific ways by Him. Sometimes we just misunderstand the true nature of those desires, or try to get ahead of Him.
Deborah - I think it's cool too when things are so obvious that it's God
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