Last week I started re-reading through Genesis and read about Abraham (Father Abraham? He had many sons? Remember?). On the off-chance you haven't been raised in the Bible Belt and aren't familiar with the little song I just referenced, Abraham was a righteous man who wanted descendants. Lots and lots of descendants to carry on his family line. Now, that is something with which I really can't identify ...in fact, little kid-lings are probably as far from what I desire as ... I don't know, something extremely hyperbolic.
But for whatever reason, that's what Abraham really wanted. And God promised Him children. He reminded Abraham repeatedly in Genesis 12 - 21 that He would bless Him with descendants more numerous than the stars of the sky. God told Abraham year after year that He wanted to fulfill His plan for Abe. And trust me, Abraham and Sarah were not the most patient of people. Throughout their waiting period, they laughed at God, they messed up, they tried to circumvent His will (see chapter 16. That is some old school Jerry Springer sort of stuff).
But for the first time (I don't know why it took me this long...), I suddenly wondered why? Why did God wait SO long to bring Abraham a son? Abraham was 100 years old when Isaac was finally born. 100.
Can you imagine? Wanting something so badly, having your heart so set on one thing, and then just...waiting? I wonder how frustrated Abraham must've been. How angry and hurt and skeptical. I think we can all sympathize with the agony of a dream deferred. It's hard. We want so passionately the things we desire, and to be told "not yet" is one of the hardest things we can hear.
I begin to wonder why God chose to wait to fulfill His promise. But I have learned, over the past year and a half of my walk with the Lord, that His timing is everything. Though it must have been so hard for Abraham to wait, we can trust that the Lord used that time to work in Abraham. Maybe He wanted Abraham to grow up a little bit. Perhaps He wanted to refine Sarah and Abe so that they would be better parents and leaders. Maybe He chose to wait until Sarah and Abraham were finally done laughing (18:13). We don't know.
We do know that God has us wait because it is in our best interest. God loves to lavish us with gifts (Luke 9:11-13), and in His wisdom He knows best what we need and when we need it. Sometimes part of the blessing are the trials and growth required to receive it.
It isn't always easy, but look how Abraham's family flourished! God promises that He wants to prosper us, and I hope we have the good grace to wait on His promise, even when it requires every last ounce of the patience we never thought we had.
-bRob
ooh, thank you for this reminder! I like thinking about that too--why did God make Abraham wait song long? And I think you're right--waiting patiently on the Lord for Him to do things in His own time is part of the growth experience...frustrating somethings, but in the end definitely worth it. Also, I now have that song stuck in my head :D
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