Thirteen long years

So I was reading Genesis 16 and 17 last night, about one of my fav's...Abraham. Genesis 16 is all about how Abraham (at that stage still called Abram) and Sarah doubt God's promise, and get impatient with His timing, so take things into their own hands and have a baby through Hagar, the servant. This chapter ends with "Abram was 86 years old when Hagar gave birth to their son, and he named him Ishmael".

Chapter 17 then starts "Abram was 99 years old when the Lord appeared to him again and said 'I am God All-Powerful. If you obey me and always do right, I will keep my solemn promise to you and give you more descendants than can be counted". Wait a minute...that means 13 years went by!! 13 long years!! 13 years before the Lord appeared to Abram again...wow.

It reminded me again of the danger of when we take things into our own hands. Sarah and Abram rushed before God impatiently, had a baby to another woman...and it all ended in a mess. But on top of that...it sounds like God didnt then appear to Abram for 13 years!! I sometimes get impatient if I dont feel like I have heard from God for a week...but 13 years?

When we rush ahead and dont trust Gods timing and plan, we run the risk of making things take longer than they were supposed to. I guess we will never know whether they could have had their baby sooner had they waited on God. But I do think that they spent the long season in silence...which would have made the waiting seem a heck of a lot longer!!

I am an impatient person. I have dreams and desires in my heart that I want to happen NOW. It seems so easy to run ahead of God and try to figure things out on my own. Put my own plans into play. But the thought of spending 13 years without hearing from God...so not worth it. Besides...my plans would never work out as amazing as God's anyways...so whats the point.

On another note, I am also thankful when I read these chapters that God is a God of second chances. Yep, they stuffed up. But that didnt disqualify them from God's promise. He gave them a second chance, and then blessed them more than they could ever imagine.

When it comes to impatience...I know all about it. But just wait. Wait for what God has for you. If you rush ahead, you actually run the risk of having to wait longer for God's promises in your life. Or worse...silence! Yes you can have a second chance...but isnt it better to just enjoy the first, perfectly planned and timed chance...