Oh what a wicked web we weave when first we decide to deceive. Afraid of what the local people would do to a man with a beautiful woman for a wife, Abram lied and led everyone around him to believe she was his sister and not his wife. This led a neighbor named Abimelech to take Sarah for his own. But before he could even sleep with his prize, God revealed to Abimelech in a dream, that Sarah was a married woman and as such, having sex with her would condemn his whole family.

Amazingly in all of this, Abram was afraid to speak up and be totally honest. Fearing for his own life, he was willing to allow his wife to be violated, another man to be condemned and God's plan frustrated. And this was not the first time he was taught this particular lesson. Even though Abram is a model of faith and obedience to all believers, he was also a man like us. He proved he would do what was right and God kept his word in time. Abram, like all of us, obviously needed God to remind him of his obligation.

Do the words in Revelation, "Kept for this very hour and day and month and year," reveal anything about our sovereign, omnipotent and purposeful God? They did to Abram and they also should to us. In fact, through understanding Scripture that reveals God's way and our personal experience, we should clearly see that God keeps his word and restrains from revealing some things until the time he deems right.

God's timing has forever been the subject of much confusion and frustration to men. It must have frustrated Abram and I doubt there's a single believer alive today who hasn't at one time or another questioned God's timing in their own life. We also demonstrate this attitude in the way we pray, or should I say the way we don't pray. We pray when we have a need and don't pray when we don't feel like it. We expect answers when we pray, but too often we refuse to listen and obey when the Holy Spirit prompts us to do it.

Sadly, I'm afraid most of us who call ourselves a Christian, behave as if we are the pivot point around which God does everything important. That attitude leads us to procrastinate when God speaks to us, while at the same time to hastily do things we shouldn't do at all. We don't listen too well and we're not totally honest with God or men. Who knows, maybe God needs to threaten us in a dream like he did Abimelech so we'll obey him?

1. Pray Through the Word - 365 devotionals on the subject of prayer by James R. Green (Gen 20; Rev 9)
2. Scripture comes from the Holy Bible, New International Version; (c)1978 by New York International Bible Society

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