“Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised” (Hebrews 11:11).
If you have ever done an in depth study on the life of Sarah, you found she wasn’t always the perfect model of godly grace and meekness. One account I read of her life said she was something of a “pampered princess.” Even in her old age she was considered quite a beauty.
For all her advantages, Sarah lacked one thing. She was barren. Back in Bible times it was almost a curse for a woman not to have children. How she longed to give her husband a child.
When she learned of God’s promise to make Abraham the father of many nations, she figured if she couldn’t be the mother, she was going to use a surrogate to set the covenant in motion.
Yes, she ran ahead of God. We’ve never done that, have we?
In defense of Sarah, she did have one thing in her favor. She had enough faith to trust God when He did promise her and Abraham a son. Sure, this older couple laughed when they got the news, but, it was more like them saying, “Lord, you have got to be kidding.”
Sarah’s faith enabled her to survive her pregnancy and become a first-time mom at the ripe old age of 90. God not only kept His promise, but, in the process worked a miracle for her and Abraham. I can’t even imagine how difficult all this was for this older mom. However, I do know she couldn’t have been happier as the dream of becoming a mom became a reality.
Sue Winchester
Missouri
PRAY TOGETHER: Pray for the Atwood family as they grieve the death of Brian Atwood, father of Brooke Turnbough (FWBIM) and brother of Richard Atwood, (FWBHM). Pray also for those affected by the weekend floodings in Tennessee.
