|
Against All Hope
"Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, 'So shall your offspring be.'"
Romans 4:18
The past few weeks, this verse has been rolling around in my heart.
I'm sure you know the story. Abraham and Sarah are living in the land of Abraham's father. They had become relatively successful, experienced the favor of God, were married for a number of years...
But still did not have a child.
I'm sure they had been praying for decades for a child. I'm sure they cried out for the blessing that is an heir. I'm sure they did everything they could, partook in the "baby-making-process" time and time again, and still... Nothing. No promise from God, no sign that they would ever have a child, let alone multiple children that indicated blessing from God.
I'm sure they thought God must not have wanted them to have children.
Then, at the ages of 75 and 65, long after their bodies were as good as dead, and they had settled in their hearts that they would never have kids, God shows up, tells Abraham to leave his father's household and head somewhere in "that" direction, and promised him the one thing Abraham and Sarah had been praying about for years: Abraham would be the father of many nations.
But the odds were stacked against them.
They had tried for decades to have a child, and were never able to conceive. They were leaving their home, the only place where they found support and encouragement and knew that people were praying for them. They were going to make a long journey to only God knew where, and they knew that Sarah was well beyond child-birthing years. The circumstances weren't looking too good.
But Abraham still believed.
In a place with no hope, in a situation where logic and science told them that God's promise would never come about, in circumstances that shouted that God didn't want to give Abraham and Sarah a son... Abraham dared to hope...
And received the promise of Isaac 25 years later.
Maybe, that promise you've been holding onto isn't dead just yet. Maybe that marriage you're believing for, that child you're praying for or that job you're looking for is going to happen. Maybe the deepest desires of your heart really will be yours.
Maybe, just maybe, the waiting is an opportunity to hope.
And so, my brothers and sisters, as you journey through your promise, waiting for God to bring about what He said He would, may you remember to hope. May you keep your eyes on Him rather than the circumstances. And may you, as you dare to hope that God will keep His promise to you, see that promise come to pass...
Even if it is 25 years in the making.
Daring to hope... Jason | 
