Waiting is the Hardest Part ~ Bible Study blog for March 27

We finally finished the first chapter of The Story!  From Noah we turned the page to Abram and Sarai.  God appears to Abram and tells him to leave his country, his people, and his household, and go to a land Gold will show him.  God promises to make him into a great nation; to bless him and make his name great; to bless those who bless them and curse those who curse them; and all the peoples of the earth will be blessed through them. 

Abram, Sarai, and Lot, and their families set out, with all their possessions in tow—even though they did not know where they were going.  But they go, believing that God keeps promises. 

Over and over again, God re-appears to affirm these promises—because they continue to wait and wait and wait…  Much time passes and no child has been born to Abram and Sarai.  But they believed God.

The fact that Abram and Sarai wait twenty-five years demonstrates to us that God’s promises do not always come to instant fulfillment—nor do they come to fulfillment apart from great personal challenge and struggle.  Even as Abram and Sarai remain some of the greatest heroes of the faith, the waiting was not easy.  But faith persists in waiting.  Faith’s desire is to see God’s promises fulfilled.  Faith expresses itself in obedience.

Which of God’s promises to you struggle most to believe?

It was agreed that one of the hardest promises to believe is that God answers prayer.  We all can remember times we’ve prayed to God in the face of a tremendous struggle or need.  Sometimes, we see miracles—and other times, we do not.  It is so hard to trust God as we do not and cannot fully understand what God is doing or know God’s plan.  It is also tremendously difficult to believe that God and God’s goodness are stronger than evil, when there is so much evil in the world.

The story of Abram and Sarai (whom God renames Abraham and Sarah) teach us what we are to do in the face of unanswered prayers and promises that remain unseen—we move forward with confidence that God is faithful and God’s promises will be fulfilled.  We walk in obedience and trust—because the journey of faith is one in which promises are fulfilled.  Like Sarah, we will soon laugh with joy when God fulfills promises.  In the meantime, we wait with patience, which is a fruit of the Holy Spirit.  Though we may wait on God for what feels like an eternity, God works even through our waiting to form us in faith and ready us for God’s promises to be fulfilled.   The waiting will make it possible for God’s greater purposes being fulfilled. 

Those who wait on God never wait in vain!

Our next Bible study is in two weeks; Thursday, April 10.