At the time appointed...

"At the time appointed I will return to you, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son" Genesis 18:14

That's another way of saying, "This is going to be a full-term baby." This means a little bit more waiting, doesn't it? And that's not the answer we're looking for! We don't want nine months of carrying a child...nine months of bearing a promise until it comes to the moment of delivery. We want to wake up in the tent one morning and have a crib in the corner with a baby crying in it. For that matter, we'd prefer that the baby be smiling and cooing. Or maybe standing up and walking and talking with a full vocabulary.

We don't want to wait! We want roses, but we don't want to weed or prune or water or wait until they bloom in all their fullness. Nor do we want to acknowledge that God might be maturing those roses and bringing fragrance into our lives through some dark, rainy, overcast days.

Can you remember the days when you actually had to dial a number with a rotary dial and stand within a few feet of the wall because you were attached to it? We need one-button, pre-programmed auto-dial. Speed! No Waiting! Immediate fulfillment! We are all schooled to instant gratification. We pray, "Lord, give me patience and I want it right now!"

Yet the Lord said to that dear elderly couple, "At the time appointed I will return to you, according to the time of life." It was going to be a regular baby on a regular schedule born in the regular way. There is an "appointed time" for me as well. God has been faithful to His word, and He will respond to the heart's desire of His children. What He delivers may not be the very thing I ask for, but it will be the very thing I need. There is much about my life that I did not ask or that I did not plan. But I can see that He has brought fruitfulness to that place where emptiness has reigned, and He has caused my desert to blossom like a rose.

Are you waiting for your "appointed time". It may not take as long as it did for Sarah, but however long it takes, it will be worth the waiting. In fact, while you go through the test of waiting, you will learn more about the Lord's miracle-working grace in your life than you would have learned if you had received a next-day delivery.

The Lord said to Abraham and Sarah. "The miracle for which you have waited will come. But it will be something that grows in your life and

comes forth in the fullness of time."

(this post was taken from personal notes and quotes written from a study on The Life of Abraham by Jack Hayford)

In Him...Chris

Chris can also be found at her personal blog Come to the Table