“Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations; according to that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be. And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara’s womb: He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.” (Romans 4:18–21, KJV 1900)
Sometimes, we think that there is no hope, that our situation is hopeless. I have felt that way at times. I started a business once in Savannah Georgia. Everything went well as I had a contract to start the business up and for six months things went strong. But then the bottom dropped out. Without business we watched the business account drop to nearly zero and then our personal savings dropped to the same. I ended up selling a car I restored so we could purchase food for the family and pay the mortgage. I was not sure we would make it. Yet, we continued to trust God. What else could we do?
Abraham trusted God. God called him and made a covenant with Abraham. In this covenant, God would make him the father of many nations, that through his seed all the nations of the earth would be blessed. Of course, this meant that Abraham would need to have a son. The problem was that Abraham was about one-hundred years old and Sarah, his wife, was barren. Humanly speaking, they had no hope of having a son. Yet, in spite of the way things looked, Abraham believed God. He did not waver. He was fully convinced that God would do exactly as He promised. This He did, by having Abraham and Sarah bring forth a son named Isaac and through his lineage, Christ came into the world who was the seed through whom all the nations would be blessed.
The point is this, with God there is nothing impossible. When God promises something, He will do it. The Scriptures are filled with thousands of promises. We used to sing a song, “Standing on the Promises.” Yet, here is the problem. How can we confidently stand on promises that we do not know? We need to be in the Word to know them.
Back to my story, after a time of humility, I learned to accept the help of others when in need. I believe that this was the greater purpose in our financial struggles. Moreover, we are still here and did not starve to death. My God did supply all of our needs. Friends, I hope you will be challenged to read and study your Bibles so that you have the knowledge of God’s promises. Then knowing them, you will be able to stand by faith confidently, just as Abraham did.
Renewing the Heart 