Genesis 16:1-6
1 Now Sarai, Abram's wife, had borne him no children. She had a female Egyptian servant whose name was Hagar. 2 And Sarai said to Abram, “Behold now, the Lord has prevented me from bearing children. Go in to my servant; it may be that I shall obtain children by her.” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai. 3 So, after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Sarai, Abram's wife, took Hagar the Egyptian, her servant, and gave her to Abram her husband as a wife. 4 And he went in to Hagar, and she conceived. And when she saw that she had conceived, she looked with contempt on her mistress. 5 And Sarai said to Abram, “May the wrong done to me be on you! I gave my servant to your embrace, and when she saw that she had conceived, she looked on me with contempt. May the Lord judge between you and me!” 6 But Abram said to Sarai, “Behold, your servant is in your power; do to her as you please.” Then Sarai dealt harshly with her, and she fled from her.
This illustrates the folly of trying to do God's work in our own power. God had promised a descendant, yet there was no descendant, so Abraham and Sarah decided to take matters into their own hands. There is a way that seems right to man, but is not of God. We must beware of this same trap in our lives. We often get impatient with our process of healing and maturing, so we go looking for some quick fix. But God is not interested in simply taking away our pain, but instead wants to do the deeper work of teaching us to trust Him. This requires patience and faith that God really is at work, even when we don't see any tangible signs. The alternative is for us to try and force a resolution, which may lead to more misery in the long run (the descendants of Hagar, the Arabs, have been a thorn in the side of the Jews for centuries).
God, forgive me for being impatient with my healing. Help me to trust You through the process, knowing that Your ways are not my ways.
1 Now Sarai, Abram's wife, had borne him no children. She had a female Egyptian servant whose name was Hagar. 2 And Sarai said to Abram, “Behold now, the Lord has prevented me from bearing children. Go in to my servant; it may be that I shall obtain children by her.” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai. 3 So, after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Sarai, Abram's wife, took Hagar the Egyptian, her servant, and gave her to Abram her husband as a wife. 4 And he went in to Hagar, and she conceived. And when she saw that she had conceived, she looked with contempt on her mistress. 5 And Sarai said to Abram, “May the wrong done to me be on you! I gave my servant to your embrace, and when she saw that she had conceived, she looked on me with contempt. May the Lord judge between you and me!” 6 But Abram said to Sarai, “Behold, your servant is in your power; do to her as you please.” Then Sarai dealt harshly with her, and she fled from her.
This illustrates the folly of trying to do God's work in our own power. God had promised a descendant, yet there was no descendant, so Abraham and Sarah decided to take matters into their own hands. There is a way that seems right to man, but is not of God. We must beware of this same trap in our lives. We often get impatient with our process of healing and maturing, so we go looking for some quick fix. But God is not interested in simply taking away our pain, but instead wants to do the deeper work of teaching us to trust Him. This requires patience and faith that God really is at work, even when we don't see any tangible signs. The alternative is for us to try and force a resolution, which may lead to more misery in the long run (the descendants of Hagar, the Arabs, have been a thorn in the side of the Jews for centuries).
God, forgive me for being impatient with my healing. Help me to trust You through the process, knowing that Your ways are not my ways.