The patience of God - Abraham & Ishmael

Question from www.twitter.com/oavina  - Any recommendation on the bible about having the patience to wait for God's answer? I have read about Abraham and Ischmael...

Looking at Genesis 16, Sarai (soon to be Sarah) is the one that gets impatient with the fact that Abraham and her are yet to conceive any children. So the story goes, that Abram (soon to be Abraham) sleeps with Hagar and she falls pregnant to Ishmael. It is clear that God did not approve of the lack of patience on the part of both Sarah and Abraham.

People have told me over the years to not run ahead of God. I’m not known for my amazing patience... God has an ‘ultimate will’ for every believer, and quite often we’re keen to run ahead of it, and do things our own way. Sure, God will still be in our lives and bless us, but how exciting and more rewarding would life be, if we always had the patience to be right where God wants us.

There’s a verse in Isaiah that I think of when I’m praying for more people to become followers of Jesus. It says (60:22) – ‘The least of you shall become a thousand, the smallest a mighty nation. I am the Lord; in its time I will do this swiftly’. The point is not so much what I’m praying about, but the fact that in God’s timing it will happen; if you trust God his will, will be fulfilled at the right time.

God bless.

www.twitter.com/petebrookshaw