“Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. But she had an Egyptian slave named Hagar; so she said to Abram, ‘The Lord has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my slave; perhaps I can build a family through her.'” – Genesis 16:1-2
The promise lingered.
The years accumulated.
The womb remained empty.
And patience wore thin.
“God needs our help,”
The thought took root.
“Perhaps this is the way,”
The plan seemed logical.
Cultural norms supported it.
Practical solutions beckoned.
Human wisdom prevailed.
Divine timing was dismissed.
So Abraham agreed.
Hagar conceived.
Sarah resented.
Conflict erupted.
How often we grow weary
Of waiting on God’s timing,
Convinced our intervention
Is what His promises need.
We create Ishmaels—
Not evil, but not the plan.
Not sinful, but not the promise.
Not wrong, but not right.
And the complications that follow
Remind us that God’s delays
Are not God’s denials.
His timing needs no assistance.
You may be tempted to force solutions
Where God asks for patience.
Remember Abraham’s lesson:
God’s promises don’t need our shortcuts.