Patience

Patience is difficult when a promise made seems long in coming. Sarai seems to have given up hope that she would bear children. After all, she was not a young woman. But her slave, Hagar, might have been younger. It seems that when Hagar realized she was pregnant, she did not respect her owner and so was sent out to the desert to fend for herself. What a conundrum!

My parents made a promise: “When the egg price goes up, you can have new roller skates.” Our friends wore their new skates, but we would have to rent them. Egg prices and good weather for harvesting had a lot of bearing on when our parents could do that. We’d always had used ice skates, but new roller skates?

The egg prices went up and Dad was able to harvest all the crops. Our parents were able to keep their promise.

God kept his promise to Sarai and Abram in time, and God saw Hagar in her distress and assured her that she, too, was valued.

How often we must wait for answers to prayer when there is pain, anxiety or anticipation, but we are assured that God hears our cries.

Dear God, help us know that you are with us always. In Jesus' name. Amen. — CRW