WAITING turns to HATING

It had been 10 years since Abram and Sarai arrived in this territory of Canaan. God had promised Abram this land, even sealed the deal with the scorching of dead animals!

After the sun went down, it was very dark. Suddenly a smoking firepot and a blazing torch passed between the halves of the dead animals.  So on that day the Lord made an agreement with Abram and said, “I will give to your descendants the land between the river of Egypt and the great river Euphrates. This is the land of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites, Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites, and Jebusites.” (Genesis 15:17-21 NCV)

But God also said something else then.
He said He'd give Abram and Sarai a son.

What was Abram thinking? Was He beginning to doubt that conversation even happened? No one else had heard.
Had he shared that little secret with Sarai, that God promised them a son?
Did he keep it to himself, waiting to see what God would do?
What HAD he heard?

What Abram WAS hearing was his wife...

Sarai said to Abram, “Look, the Lord has not allowed me to have children, so have sexual relations with my slave girl. If she has a child, maybe I can have my own family through her.”
Abram did what Sarai said. (Genesis 16:2 NCV)

Ohhh, Abram, you did what your wife said. Just like so many of you men do! You want to make your wife happy. You don't want to see her whine and cry! You want her to be proud of you...

We can blame Sarai for whining, or Abram for not waiting on God, but why blame? Why not just learn from this, ALL OF US!

It was after he had lived ten years in Canaan that Sarai gave Hagar to her husband Abram. (Hagar was her slave girl from Egypt.) (Genesis 16:3 NCV)

This little act of impulsiveness caused a whole lot of problems in that household!

Two women in one house sharing one man, not a good idea! I don't care what you polygamist say!

Hagar cops an attitude and treats Sarai bad!

Abram had sexual relations with Hagar, and she became pregnant. When Hagar learned she was pregnant, she began to treat her mistress Sarai badly. (Genesis 16:4 NCV)p

Then Sarai blames it on Abram..

Then Sarai said to Abram, “This is your fault. I gave my slave girl to you, and when she became pregnant, she began to treat me badly. Let the Lord decide who is right—you or me.” (Genesis 16:5 NCV)

Pick one of us! Come on Abram..you know you always wanted her anyways! Well take her!

Abram...he was caught in the middle now wasn't he? He'd had it with these women!

But Abram said to Sarai, “You are Hagar’s mistress. Do anything you want to her.” Then Sarai was hard on Hagar, and Hagar ran away. (Genesis 16:6 NCV)

And all the while a baby is in the middle of it all! In all the screaming, all the yelling, hurt feelings, harsh words....there is a innocent baby who had to take the brunt of it.

So many decisions will effect children in a hard way. Innocent children.
Addictions.
Divorce.
Jail time..
Lying.
Cheating.
NOT listening to GOD,
and in this case not waiting on Him!

They just didn't wait well did they?
Can't say as I always have either.
How about you, do you wait well?
God wants to make us better while we wait.
He wants to teach us to wait!

When we don't wait well, we can get angry, depressed, frustrated...and waiting CAN turn to hating...hating life, hating each other, hating ourselves, even God!!

Our waiting should be exuding peace!
It should show our faith in God!
We wait well when we trust God!
And not....certainly not --ourselves!

Created about 1 year ago