DAILY DEVOTIONAL FROM PASTOR WESLEY January 7, 2022

Renewed Youth

Now the LORD appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre, …When he lifted up his eyes, behold, three men were standing opposite him; and he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the earth, and said, ``My Lord, if now I have found favor in Your sight, please do not pass Your servant by. ``Please let a little water be brought and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree; and I will bring a piece of bread, that you may refresh yourselves; after that you may go on, since you have visited your servant." And they said, ``So do, as you have said." …and he was standing by them under the tree as they ate. Then they said to him, ``Where is Sarah your wife?" And he said, ``There, in the tent." He said, ``I will surely return to you at this time next year; and behold, Sarah your wife will have a son." And Sarah was listening at the tent door, which was behind him. Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in age; Sarah was past childbearing. Sarah laughed to herself, saying, ``After I have become old, shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?" And the LORD said to Abraham, ``Why did Sarah laugh, saying, `Shall I indeed bear a child, when I am so old?' ``Is anything too difficult for the LORD? At the appointed time I will return to you, at this time next year, and Sarah will have a son." Sarah denied it however, saying, ``I did not laugh"; for she was afraid. And He said, ``No, but you did laugh." Genesis 18:1-15; Then the LORD took note of Sarah as He had said, and the LORD did for Sarah as He had promised. So, Sarah conceived and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the appointed time of which God had spoken to him. Abraham called the name of his son who was born to him, whom Sarah bore to him, Isaac. Then Abraham circumcised his son Isaac when he was eight days old, as God had commanded him. Now Abraham was one hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him. Sarah said, ``God has made laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh with me." And she said, ``Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age." Genesis 21:1-7

Have you been waiting for God to do something about a situation in your life? Perhaps you’ve prayed about it for years or even decades, yet nothing has changed. If that’s the case, you may at this point feel hope is gone.

That’s probably how Sarah felt. Though God had promised to give Abraham a son, the aged couple remained childless. So, when the Lord told Abraham that Sarah would have a son the following year, she laughed—not with joy, but with skepticism, saying, “After I have become old, am I to have pleasure, my lord being old also?” (Genesis 18:12). Thinking it was too late for God to keep His promise, she had lost her hope.

The next year, however, when Sarah held Isaac in her arms, she laughed with the joy that comes from seeing God keep His promise (Genesis 21:6). Her youthful outlook was renewed by experiencing the Lord’s faithfulness, and He will do the same for you. But even if He doesn’t give the specific answer to prayer that you desire, one thing is certain: God is just as faithful to you as He was to Sarah. Remember that He sees the future and knows each of us better than we know ourselves—and will answer prayer accordingly in order to give us what is best. Let this truth rejuvenate your flagging spirit and fill your heart with joy. No matter one's age, we can always experience a renewed spirit by looking for God's faithfulness.

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