Waiting for the Right time

I love the connection between those whose lives are revealed in scripture and those of us walking the Earth  today. Although I’ve read the ancient stories many times, the narratives of certain characters pop out at me during certain times in my life.

  Their humanity-the raw, imperfect, struggle for control, connects with me. 

As does their desire to believe in the promises of a God who chooses to be in relationship with them.  A God who has repeatedly demonstrated unwavering loyalty, ultimate wisdom, unconquerable power. 
 
And yet, like them, I find myself on the precipice of choosing to trust in my God or myself.

  Lately, I’ve found Abraham and Sarah as my walking partners in this season of life.  No, I am not pregnant, nor have I heard the voice of God telling me I should be. (I cannot even imagine that news at 90!) However, like Sarah, I have goals that I desire to be fulfilled. In the near future.  These goals are not what I would consider selfish goals. They are based on desires that I believe God has placed on my heart. Things like more speaking engagements, more time to blog, publish a book.  But, like Sarah, my vision for when those “dreams” become reality do not always line up with God’s timing.

Waiting is not my strongest trait.  I can be a little bit like Veruca Salt in “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory”, when she sings in her whiny voice…”I want it now!”

 

Sarah had a bit of Veruca in her as well.  Who can really blame her? She has been told that her desires for a child will be fulfilled. Finally. After 60+ years of waiting. Can you imagine the joy she felt?  For a woman in that time, being barren meant social stigma, financial uncertainty, and a dream left unfulfilled.  At 90 years old, God tells her it’s gonna happen!  But then it didn’t. And it didn’t. And….it didn’t.  So….maybe…. she and Abraham needed to help God fulfill the plan?  After all, God couldn’t really make a 90 year old woman fertile. Right?  Hmmm… 
 
In their “I want it now” moment, Sarah and Abraham complicated what God had intended. Hagar, Sarah’s slave, is drawn into the plan. The result was, indeed, a baby.  A beautiful creation of God. But, he was not God’s intention. Not the right time. Although, God blessed Hagar and her son Ishmael, Sarah and Abraham’s relationship suffered complications as a result of their forced plan. Eventually, at the right time, God fulfilled the promise of a child through Isaac.  At the right time.