Genesis 12:1-4,21:5

"Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee: and I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: and I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him ... and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran ... And Abraham was an hundred years old, when his son Isaac was born unto him."

In Genesis 12 we find the first mention of the person called Abram, later known as Abraham. In the same year that Noah died the LORD appeared to Abram and made some tremendous promises. These can be summed up as God promising great blessing on his life. One of these promises was that God would make of Abram a great nation. Now at this time he was without children, his wife being barren. He was already 75 years old at the time of these promises being made, and Sarai, his wife, was 65.

As the account continues through subsequent chapters in Genesis we find God repeating His promises, and getting increasingly specific concerning how they would be fulfilled. Ultimately, God tells Abraham that he and Sarah would have a son, called Isaac, that would be the one through whom the promises would be fulfilled. The timing of this information was only 9 months before the birth of Isaac. Both Sarah and Abraham are amused by this (Isaac means "laughter"), but God assures them with the question, "Is anything too hard for the LORD?" So, when Isaac is born, as recorded in Genesis 21, we find Abraham at the age of 100, and Sarah at the age of 90! No, nothing is too hard for the LORD, although it is impossible for Him to lie. God had promised something to Abram, and He kept His promise. Ultimately, Sarah died at the age of 127 and Abraham at 175.

25 years is a long time to wait. We tend to weary of waiting. In this day of instant everything we become irritated at the slightest delay. Hence we have faster computers (which will be replaced in 6 months by even faster computers). Drivers blow their horn only moments after the light turns green. Imagine our state of mind if we are promised great wealth, but are required to wait a few years to attain it. Abraham waited 25 years to see the son that would be the beginning of the great nation promised by God. At one point Abraham and Sarah decided to try and help God out of His dilemma (we're too old to have children), and of their plan was born Ishmael. But this was not the one that God was going to use to keep His promise. God had His own plan that would be executed in keeping with His own timing.

If we belong to the LORD Jesus Christ we have every assurance from scripture that He will not forsake us. That is what waiting feels like. We think that because a thing is taking time to accomplish it must be that He has forgotten or abandoned us. But this is simply not so. There are an infinite number of unseen (to us) details that He is working out. His plans include all of His people. And the timing of an outcome in your life is such that it will have a specific impact on many others as well. And to each of those the impact may be very different. This is how detailed God's plans are. Since He will never forsake us we are left with only one thing we can do; wait. We could fuss and fidget, too. But that would be a great waste of energy and resources. After all, many things are out of our control, and our worrying about them has no real impact on the outcome. So in our waiting we must also learn to rest. Psalm 37 combines these, "Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass." Waiting is good, waiting and resting is better.

About what are we concerned today? There are as many difficulties as there are people in the world. Has God forgotten you, or does it only seem like it? Will He really work things together for good, as He promises? Wait on the LORD, and rest in Him. His arm is not shortened. Its just that His plans are big, and His timing is impeccable. Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for Him. "Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass."

"... Willing should He not require me, in silence to wait on Him still."

HJK