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Women in Jesus' Family Tree Sarah, Wait on the Lord Now Sarai, Abram's wife, had borne him no children. But she had an Egyptian maidservant named Hagar; so she said to Abram, "The LORD has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my maidservant; perhaps I can build a family through her." FULL SCRIPTURE LESSON: Genesis 16:1-6 Facts
Summary Sarah was barren and unable to have children. She was 90 years old and her husband, Abraham, was 100 years old. Sarah asked her Egyptian handmaiden, Hagar, to sleep with her husband. When the child, Ishmael, was born Sarah became distressed by her decision. She noticed that Hagar began to act superior to her mistress because she produced a son for Abraham while Sarah was still barren. Study God had promised Abraham that he would have descendents...so many that he could not even count for they would be numbered like the stars. As time passed by, the couple became older and physically it seemed impossible for them to conceive a child. But what seemed impossible in human eyes is often possible in God's eyes. The child would be born according to God's timing and plan. Often we become impatient waiting on God's plan and we decide to hurry the process along ourselves. When we do our own thing, we often feel the results our actions like Sarah felt in this lesson. Sarah is regretting her hasty decision to provide her husband an heir through her handmaiden. This heir was not the one that God intended to form a nation. Even more importantly to notice, while her husband received a son, Sarah still was unfulfilled. God intended for both of them to be fulfilled this included the end to Sarah's barren state. To make matters worse, the servant ridicules Sarah's inability to conceive. It was very important during biblical times for a woman to provide her husband with sons. Sons were needed to ensure the continuation of the family genealogy. Some of our troubles are unexpected trials of life and/or tests of faith. Many times the cause for our suffering, stems from our own "Ms. Fix-It" mentality. What we thought was broken and needed our expertise, in fact was never broken but God's will. It took me almost ten years to figure out my career calling. I have wanted to try everything from nursing to teaching to engineering. I finally discovered God wanted me equipped to use the computer. What I do everyday is teach others how to be comfortable with their computer and software. I also use my computer skills to create web pages that uplift and spread the gospel across the internet. I have discovered this career and ministry opportunity through a gradual process and some confusing periods. My confusion was caused by my need to find my calling "NOW" in terms of waiting on the Lord. So I tried this and that, never feeling completely fulfilled. Application Whenever we try to handle things our own way, we show distrust in God - remember when Sarah laughed (Genesis 18:12-13). Don't give up on the Lord when it seems your prayers are going unanswered. When you pray to him, He has already worked out a solution to your problems. One of my favorite songs is by gospel artist, Dottie Peeples, is "He's an on-time God, yes, he is! He's an on-time God, yes, he is! He may not come when you want Him, but He'll be there right on time. He's an on-time God, yes, he is!" "Those that wait on the Lord will fly up like eagles, they will walk and not be weary, they will run and not be faint. Isaiah 40:31 Further Reading
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