January 7, 2024

Genesis 18.14 (NIV)

“Is anything too hard for the Lord?”

Are we thinking too small when we consider God’s undefeatable work in our lives?*

What would we do if we were in Abraham’s sandals? Or Sarah’s? God had promised Abraham that a son, coming from his own body, would be his heir. When it seemed that time was running out for these two old people, Sarah “generously” suggested that Abraham could help God fulfill his promise by having a son with their servant, Hagar. (Everyone came to regret this plan – but that’s another story!) Then, when Abraham was 100 years old and Sarah was 90, she overheard God telling Abraham that by the next year they would have a son. Sarah couldn’t help laughing but she lied about it when God asked her why she laughed. God’s response to her laughter includes these words: Is anything too hard for the Lord?

If God can create everything out of nothing, why was it so hard to believe that an old woman could have a baby?  Sarah’s doubt was a result of her reliance on her senses and her circumstances. Abraham, too, tended to “rely on his wits rather than on God.”* He believed God but he couldn’t seem to wait for God to fulfill his promise in his time; he thought God needed his help.

Aren’t we guilty of the same thing? Aren’t we impatient when doors close; when God seems to ignore our prayers? If we believe that God means what he says, we should never be guilty of trying to help God fulfill his word.* If you don’t know what to do next, don’t do anything. Wait. Prayerfully and expectantly.

In the vast majority of instances, God makes himself known to us in spite of what we try to do, not because of it.*

*Quote sources available upon request.