We Miss God’s Plan for Our Life When…

We Abandon God’s Timing and Settle for Self Timing

 

So after Abram had been living in Canaan ten years, Sarai his wife took her Egyptian maidservant Hagar and gave her to her husband to be his wife. (Genesis 16:3)

 

It is a mistake to forsake Godly foresight, especially when it is surely given.  One mistake often births a second and then a third.  I don’t know about you, but I barely recover from one detour, never mind a second or third detour.  The scriptures reveal that Ishmael was born because Abraham and Sarah couldn’t wait any longer. Because they couldn’t wait for God, they also failed to detect the potential disaster their mistakes would create for millennia to come.

Now maybe you still don’t think that looking ahead is important and disobeying God is no big deal. Maybe you think that your mistakes are “your mistakes” and they do not affect anyone else.  As believers, it is imperative we look ahead and seek Godly foresight.

Our sins, errors, or mistakes have lasting consequences.  In the case of our passage today, Abraham and Sarah missed the fact that their “Ishmael” would create dissention.  First, Hagar and Sarah began to argue and disagree due to jealousy and envy.  Eventually, God’s promised child was born.  Now this same dissention carried over to the next generation.  As you know, the conflicts between the seed of Abraham (Isaac and Ishmael) continue to this day.  Does all this seem like a good idea? What seemed like a good idea soon became a colossal disaster.  Now it might have seemed like a good idea for Abraham to have a son by Hagar, after all Sarah was too old, but they failed to look ahead.

Have you ever received a speeding ticket?  Did you conclude, “I shouldn’t have received that ticket.  I wasn’t speeding.”  But I ask – Are there consequences to speeding?  You may think not if you conclude… “There are no consequences if I don’t get caught.”

Yet the ones who do not get caught are the same ones who wreck and cause others to wreck or kill themselves.  Speeding has consequences.  One teenager in Philadelphia has received 440 tickets! He faces possible fines of up to $88,000, 6 years in prison, and a lifetime ban on driving.

One of our prayers should be –  “Lord, catch me now.  Give me a ticket now before I make a big mistake.  Help me to look ahead with Godly foresight. Help me to slow down and go in Your speed and time.”

SPEEDING – Is thinking your “time” is more important than the law.

SPIRITUAL SPEEDING – Is thinking God is moving too slow, therefore I need to speed things up.

If God were passing out spiritual speeding tickets today or if Gabriel were to pull you over, would he give you a spiritual speeding ticket for getting out of God’s timing?  It is far better for the Lord to “ticket” you before you get out of His timing and bring lasting consequences upon you and your family.

• Sometimes we must wait so God can prepare us for what lies ahead.
• Sometimes God makes us wait so that He can work on some weaknesses we have.
• Sometimes God makes us wait to strengthen our faith.
• Sometimes God makes us wait to benefit those who are watching our life.
• Sometimes God makes us wait in order to give us His very best, not just what is adequate for the moment.
• Sometimes God makes us wait for reasons only He knows.

Whatever the case, the better choice is to wait upon the Lord.

 

Blessings,

Pastor