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Written by Eliuth Araque de Valencia, volunteer with Iron Rose Sister Ministries in Colombia
“And by faith even Sarah, who was past childbearing age, was enabled to bear children because she considered him faithful who had made the promise.” (Heb. 11:11)
I can assure you that both you and I have passed through a variety of seasons in our walk of faith. In particular, I have experienced seasons of fruitfulness and I have also experienced seasons of suffering where I did not understand how God could redeem it. And yet, He did.
In my family devotional life, each night we pray for our deepest needs; it is one of the most anticipated moments, opening our hearts, recognizing that we have our struggles. Each one participates giving their requests… that is the dynamic. My turn comes. I once again made a recurring and embarrassing request for a woman who longs to receive the praise of her husband and children, and at the end of a day with a hectic and busy schedule I said: “I ask that God work in my life as the woman He wants me to be, with a soft and quiet spirit pleasing in His eyes.” My son replied and said: "You have been asking for the same thing for a long time." And this was my starting point of affliction, of pain and anguish. "Yes son, it's time."
It is not that God does not always answer my prayers exactly the way I want Him to, nor how many times I manifest them, it was time to not stand there waiting for something magical to happen, but to trigger change and truly take advantage of every opportunity as a mother, wife, daughter and sister to show Christ, even when His very nature is to redeem.
And this is what I see today in this passage. Here Sarah, wife of the great patriarch Abraham, tends to be seen in a frame of dignity and honor. But reading the biblical description of her life, it is impossible not to notice that at times she acted very badly. She may throw fits and tantrums, be impatient, moody, scheming, fierce, mean, fickle, bad-tempered, jealous, erratic, irrational, a winner, complaining, and nagging. However, it has always been a reference or the perfect model of godly grace and meekness.
So, it's easy to start from praise, thinking that we're good Christians, that we read our Bibles, that we pray regularly, that we congregate faithfully and obey all the rules. This is an inaccurate version of ourselves. We fail daily, we are unfaithful every time we choose to sin, we are weak and easily distracted. We can have it all by appearance, but our heart tells the truth. When our life is not according to God's plans and purposes, all we experience is pain, misery, and much regret. At some point it can seem to work in our favor and at the same time be far from God, in slavery, stagnant, without significant changes.
Sara was a creature driven by carnal problems like us. There was one thing she wanted above all else, and that was having children. But she was barren from the beginning to the end of her childbearing years. In fact, this is pretty much the first thing scripture mentions about her in Genesis 11:30, obviously grieving over barrenness. Each episode of bad humor or conflict in her family was preceded by her failure due to her infertility. This consumed her. She spent many years dealing with the frustration and depression that her reality produced. Her desperate desire for motherhood was ended by accepting the fact of her barrenness (Gen. 16:2). She wanted her husband to have an heir so badly that she came up with a plan between him and her maid.
Conceivably, the aftermath of such a carnal alibi was nearly life-tearing and seemed to leave a permanent scar on her personality. Her bitterness infuriated her for thirteen years, until she finally insisted that Abraham expel the other woman, and the child they had fathered.
Her defects are notorious and enough, there is no doubt, she had fallen. Her faith weakened, her heart led her down a wrong path, flaws visible and unquestionable. And we wonder, could there be something more? Fortunately, yes, there was much more to Sara than that. She had both strong points and glaring flaws. The scriptures actually commend her for her faith and steadfastness. The apostle Peter points to her as a model of how each wife should submit to the authority of her husband. Her life is characterized by humility, meekness, hospitality, fidelity, deep affection for her husband, sincere love for God and hope in all trials.
After making this contrast and contradiction, I can conclude that Sarah was a woman who received redemption, because she learned what was valuable, she believed, giving birth to a son after the years of her fertility, being old, a precedent in Hebrew history. The most relevant aspects are her unfailing fidelity to her husband, her perseverance against incredible obstacles and the firmness of her faith; they became the main feature of his legacy. Indeed, the New Testament admires her in the hall of faith: "Because she considered him faithful who had made the promise." (Heb. 11:11)
The full spectacle of Sarah's faith is not fully appreciated until the many seemingly insurmountable obstacles to that faith are considered. The happiness of God's promise fulfilled, not because of Sarah's perfection in obedience or faith, but because God is faithful to His word. Some promises of God are conditional on us doing something. But others are unconditional and are fulfilled not because of what we do, but because of who God is.
“Look to Abraham, your father, and to Sarah, who gave you birth. When I called him he was only one man, and I blessed him and made him many.” (Is. 51:2)
Now, dear reader, a life of faith is what God appreciates. You and I are not perfect women, we cannot be. God is not indifferent, He sustains us. Today, believe despite your struggles by remembering Sarah. She, against hope, trusted that the impossible for her, that which caused her laughter, would become true. And because He is faithful, we who believe in Christ are justified and redeemed.
That is why God shows His love in that, even though we were sinners, Christ died for us, to enjoy righteousness, believing in Him; being rich in mercy, He not only had a redemptive plan with Sarah and her family but also a plan for us. With the name of Jesus, enjoy, laugh embracing the value of each moment in faith and redemption in the hope of the glorious gospel that sustains us.
#IronRoseSister #HIStories #faith #hope #Sarah #againsthope #trust #redemption #imperfectredeemed #blog
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Written by Mirelis González Sánchez, volunteer with Ministerio Hermana Rosa de Hierro in Honduras
I have been teaching children’s classes for years in different congregations and one of the things that I enjoy the most is everything I can learn about them. These tiny creatures have a great natural capacity to transmit beautiful teachings and values that are necessary to enter the Kingdom of God. By observing them and valuing the importance of the ingenuity and transparency of their hearts.
On one occasion, one of the girls in my class got very excited about a puppet that we use on Sundays to recreate the Bible story we are sharing. I knew that she loved puppies and so I allowed her to play the role of that little animal, created by God during the formation of the world. When the class was over, we all gathered the resources we had used and I told the group goodbye and that I hoped to see them the next week.
The following Sunday, I noticed as “my little animal lover” came closer that she had a sad and worried face. When I talked with her, I understood what happened. She felt sorry and sad because without anyone realizing it, she had taken the puppy puppet home since she had liked it so much. She told me that she felt really bad for what she had done to her teacher that she loved. Right then, she showed me a teddy bear from home that she wanted to gift to the class as a demonstration of her repentance for her behavior.
The attitude of this little girl prompted me to remember and meditate on a very important theme for Christians. She not only understood what she had done, but the change of heart motivated her to act in a way that demonstrated her repentance.
When we draw near to the feet of Jesus, one of the first things we learn, besides His love, is that we should repent. That moment is a necessary step in order to be saved, not one we can skip over.
We often refer to repentance only as a feeling of guilt and sorry that we should have after bad acts. When we go to the Bible and dig deeper, we see the true repentance that the Lord demands, not just the feeling of pain for our sins, but rather it should lead us to change our way of thinking that, in turn, transforms our way of acting.
“Produce fruit in keeping with repentance” (Matt. 3:8)
First, we must understand the depth of love God has for us and the sinful condition in which we were found. This leads us to change our reaction to sin. In other words, if we sin, it should hurt and sadden us. Consequently, these two attitudes will lead us to act in a way that reflects sincere efforts to distance ourselves from sin in order to establish direct communion with God.
If the repentance we experience stays only in our thoughts or a confession of our faults and does not yield true fruit, it will remain simply as a regret on our conscience. In the Bible, we see various examples of people that, even though they recognized their sins, they did not demonstrate authentic repentance. This was the case with the Pharaoh of Egypt (Ex. 9:27) and King Saul (1 Sam. 15:24).
God seeks in us a repentance that leads to joy based on the hope that He offers us salvation and forgiveness of sins. This is totally different from the regret that Judas Iscariot experienced when he recognized that he had sold his Lord who was innocent. The result of his sadness was not to turn to God, but rather to take his life in a tragic way.
It is necessary as daughters of God to seek daily an attitude of repentance. We can all grow closer to His presence no matter how dark our past. Pedro shows us that, in spite of his faults, his character flaw that led him to deny His Teacher, he opened his heart to show true humility. Pedro knew to recognize the power of the Lord and courageously admitted the magnitude of his sin. The Bible tells us that he cried bitterly and repentantly. This heartfelt act was the door through which the Holy Spirit could work in his life. After this, the apostle reflected his joy as a valuable instrument in the hands of God to carry the gospel to many. He even gave his life for the cause of his Savior.
“Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord” (Acts 3:19).
So, let’s reflect for a moment. Is our repentance the complete process that yields true fruit for God or simply an internal personal reflection?
#IronRoseSister #HIStories #repentance #truerepentance #changeofheartandaction #forgiveness #guestwriter #blog