By: Ashleigh Wyatt
I struggle daily with being patient and waiting for God’s perfect timing. I easily get discouraged as I watch those around me living their dreams and getting to do the things in life that I so desperately want to do myself. I am constantly praying for patience and for peace knowing that what God has planned for me is beyond anything I could ever imagine. I am reminded of the story of Abraham and Sarah and how their prayers were answered according to God’s plan, not their own.
By the time Abraham was 75, he still did not have a child of his own. In Genesis 15:2-4 Abraham (still known as Abram), prays to God asking Him what He could give Abram since he still did not have a child. When he said that a servant would become his heir, God responded by saying,
“…a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.” (Genesis 15:4)
Abraham continued to wait for what God has promised, and when he was 99 years old, he was still waiting. In Genesis 17:1-5 God makes a covenant with Abraham saying,
“…you will be the father of many nations.” (Genesis 17:4)
God did not tell Abraham exactly when He would deliver him the promised child, only that He would keep His promise.
At the age of 100 years old the son that was promised to Abraham and Sarah was born. Genesis 21:1-2 says,
“Now the Lord was gracious to Sarah as He had said, and the Lord did for Sarah what He had promised. Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised him.”
Did you catch that? Let’s look at that again. The verse says “…at the very time God had promised.” God delivered what He had promised at the very time He had promised. Abraham and Sarah were blessed for their waiting with the gift of their promised son. Sometimes our prayers are answered in completely different ways than what we had been praying. Sometimes our prayers aren’t answered how we want them to be answered at all, God may close one door and open a completely different one. It is hard to wait for the things we want and it is even harder (at least for me) to comprehend how wonderful God’s plan will be for our lives if we just trust in Him and His timing. I am thankful for the prayers He has already answered and so excited to see His plan unfold for future prayers.
To Think About:
1. Are there any prayers you can think of that have been answered for you?
2. Were any of those answered in a way you weren’t praying for?
3. Did they end up being answered in a way that was better than you could have ever imagined?
