Expediency Over Faith

I've just finished reading the life of Abraham, as told by Moses in Genesis 12-25. Repeatedly, expediency dictated the patriach's choices. Shortcutting God's promise of an heir, Abraham took Sarah's bad advice to have a son by Hagar, her handmaiden. After all, God had promised to give Abraham descendants as numerous as the stars, and at the tender age of  99, he remained childless. The resulting two offspring, Ishmael and Issac, founded the Arabs and the Jews respectively, two nations that live as enemies to this day On two occasions, with two different kings, Abraham tried to pass Sarah off as his sister instead of his wife. Even though the ruse failed the first time, he used it again. Repeating a sin --something I can surely relate to in my life.

Reading of Abraham's failure to learn brings more than a knowledge of biblical history. When I gear myself up for a quest that has to happen in my time frame, I often run a muck! Whether the issue involves the time to start a family, complete a degree, change jobs, have surgery, or retire, I too often grab control rather than depend on God's sovereignty. According to the dictionary, expediency "usually implies what is immiediately advantageous without regard for ethics or consistent principles." Perhaps I'd do well to look at God's creation this snowy winter and realize that nothing I do changes the rate at which He melts the snow. I may have plans, meetings to attend, doctor's appointments scheduled, but He asks me to simply have faith that He has all things in His sovereign control. Then, instead of manipulating things for the sake of expediency, I can trust that He does all things in His time. Like Abraham, I still have lots to learn.