Perhaps

“The Lord has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my slave; perhaps I can build a family through her. (Genesis 16:2)

The Middle East.  A breeding ground for wars, conflicts, hatred, and raging emotions.  You name it, the other side of the world is dangerous and treacherous.  And in the middle of that unstable region, sits God’s choice real estate – Israel.  You would think it would be the safest and most adored nation in the world.  So, you would think.  There are thirty-six countries that refuse to even recognize Israel at this present time.  Yet Israel is still God’s chosen land, chosen nation, chosen people.  But this hatred for Israel is nothing new.  The bitter emotions toward God’s sacred piece of real estate, has been around for centuries.  Mainly because of one simple word we find in the book of Genesis – the word “perhaps.”

Abraham and Sarah wanted a child but had none.  God promised them a child, but they ran out of patience with God’s delayed promise.  So, Miss Sarah decided that “perhaps” she could get the child she longed for by giving hubby Abraham her maid Hagar.  Sounded like a good idea to them – at the time.  And the rest is history, as they say.  Because as we all now know, it was a bad idea – a very bad idea!

Life is difficult.  And at times being a follower of Jesus Christ can make life even more difficult for us.  We want to obey the Lord, but walking a path of faith is not the easiest way to live at times.  Mainly because faith usually involves waiting for what we want.   So, in those times of waiting on God we try taking matters into our own hands.  We try to give God a little nudge.  Or as we wrestle with doubt and despair, we incorporate a little of our self-effort.  The sort of self-effort that results in more suffering, pain, and heartache.  Thinking that intervening would simplify things, we instead learn that it complicates everything.  “Perhaps” can create more difficulties than deliverance.

When we set aside faith and turn to self-effort, we cause more trouble in our lives than we were ever prepared for.  Somehow, we erroneously think “perhaps” our self-efforts will help.  So, instead of trusting God by waiting for him to act, we act and end up with chaos.  If you are sitting in God’s waiting room right now, remember, God has a plan for your life and your situation.  And all your human efforts do is make matters worse.  Just look at the news from the Middle East and realize what the world might be today if only Abraham and Sarah would have waited on God – rather than “perhaps.”

                                                      Darlene