"I will maintain my covenant with you." - Genesis 17:3-9
To appreciate God’s promise in the first reading, we are invited to take a step back and understand Abraham’s journey and longing of having a family. God made a covenant with Abraham that he would become the father of a great nation. It meant him and his barren wife, Sarah, would be blessed with children. At a time when others in their community were having grandchildren or great-grandchildren, Abraham and Sarah will finally become parents. This promise left them in awe of how nothing is impossible for God.
When I think of Abraham and Sarah, I am encouraged to live my faith in such a way where I do not have to explain or reason. It is easy to say I believe God is a God of miracles, that nothing is too difficult for him, but when my circumstances seem dire, hopeless, and uncomfortable, I am forced to wrestle with this truth in the deepest corners of my heart and begin feeling increasingly vulnerable. During those times, I am reminded of God’s faithfulness. He is faithful even when I am faithless. And when I defy closing my heart or relying on my own resources to trust Him, He gives me faith to rest in the promise that He is working all things together for my good and His glory. It requires total trust in His covenantal promise to continuously unfold in my life and realizing that knowing God’s will is not enough, but doing God’s will is essential.
As I reflect upon my past, I could see God’s hand in every step of my faith journey. But back then, when I looked towards the future, I could not make peace with uncertainty. Yet nothing in the biblical narrative tells us certainty is part of the deal. I am slowly learning with each passing day to leave my hands a little more unclenched because if I cannot trace His hand, I can always trust His heart.
Lord, help me to remember Your promises, to wait with patient trust, and to hold out for Your miracle.
Tam Lontok
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