Pearls from the Bible 71

Are we able to recognize the heavenly interventions while we carry out our everyday life? In Genesis chapter 18, Abraham welcomed three strangers. Verse 10 says, "One of them said, 'Nine months from now I will come back, and your wife Sarah will have a son.'" It is obvious that He is God. Abraham was able to recognize them and served them. Verse 8 says, "There under the tree he served them himself, and they ate." But on the other hand, we can see Sarah has no full understanding that someone beyond her little brain's understanding is in her midst. She was laughing at His (God's) words when He promised her a son. God saw her disbelief or her doubting God's words of promise to her. Her mind quickly calculated the practical side of the issue. She knows (based on human understanding of the body) that her physical body has no ability to respond anymore to childbirth.

Are we like Abraham or like Sarah? Are we able to recognize the divine hand at work in our lives every day, or are we laughing at our situation thinking there is no hope? But to Sarah God answered directly in verse 14, "Then the Lord asked Abraham, 'Why did Sarah laugh and say, "Can I really have a child when I am old?" Is there anything too hard for the Lord? As I said, nine months from now I will return and Sarah will have a son.'"

Though Abraham and Sarah are one family, they differed in their understanding when it comes to knowing who the Lord is. May we as a family never get satisfied with such progress. May we determine to grow in the Lord together. May we know Him. As a family, let us recognize God and put our trust in God.

Dear God, thank you for being there in our everyday life. May we always recognize your divine works in our lives. We confess that nothing is hard for you. We confess that you will make the impossible possible in our lives. Thank you for your loving presence. May we serve you and commune with you like how Abraham did. Help us, Lord, to get closer to you in the midst of all practical issues we face. May we live by faith and not by sight. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.