For this was how the promise was stated: “At the appointed time I will return, and Sarah will have a son.”–Romans 9:9

If there is one thing that is for sure, it is that God makes promises. He gives us promises so we can rest our hope upon them. His promises give us something to look forward to. They give us reasons to press on when we otherwise would give up. They inspire us to reach higher, try harder, and dig deeper.

However, we must always be aware that God’s promises also carry with them great peril. That peril isn’t ever the risk from outside factors that always accompany following God. Those risks are rarely as fearsome as we make them out to be, and never bigger than the God who calls on us to take them. No, the greatest danger in God’s promises is that we pursue them so devotedly, so passionately, and so single-mindedly that they become
the object of our pursuit.

That’s what happened to Abraham. God promised him a son. Abraham waited…and no son. So he came up with a plan. Instead of having a son with his wife, he had one with his wife’s servant.

Let’s not judge Abraham too quickly or harshly. After all God gave him the promise. Abraham was only helping God do what God already said would happen.

We all do that, don’t we? We all have an idea for what God wants to do for us, but when we wait too long we figure we need to help God out. We justify it by thinking, “Perhaps God’s called me to do this,” or “Maybe this is how God planned to fulfill His promise all along.” But here’s the rub: when we “help God out” we aren’t helping because God doesn’t need our help to fulfill His promises to us. God never calls us to cross over from doing our part to doing His part.

When God promises, He always gives us enough information to know which part is His and which part is ours. God didn’t only promise Abraham a son, he said it would happen “at the appointed time.” God has a “when” in mind. God’s promises are only ever fulfilled when God wants. Not when we want. Every time we try to make them happen faster we get less-than God desires.

He said, “I will return.” God has a “who” in mind. God’s promises are never fulfilled outside His presence.

And He said, “Sarah will have a son.” God has a “how” in mind. God always sets up His promises so that we know He made it happen. Abraham and Sarah were both older than dirt. But men carry the biological capability of conceiving children right up to the day they die. Women do not. It was nothing special that Abraham could have a child. But for a woman Sarah’s age it was impossible. Only God could make that happen.

Here’s the bottom line: In this instance, Abraham pursued the promise when He should have been pursuing God. God’s promises are great! Chase after His promises, but make that secondary to the pursuit of the Promise Giver.