Contemplative Bible Reading

Genesis 18:11-14 (New Living Translation)

11 Abraham and Sarah were both very old by this time, and Sarah was long past the age of having children. 12 So she laughed silently to herself and said, “How could a worn-out woman like me enjoy such pleasure, especially when my master—my husband—is also so old?”

13 Then the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh? Why did she say, ‘Can an old woman like me have a baby?’ 14 Is anything too hard for the Lord? I will return about this time next year, and Sarah will have a son.”

That’s life. Old women don’t have babies. Old men don’t care. When you are senile, that’s life, you don’t get better. If you are born with this or that, that’s life. There is no change.

Then we read verse 14 and, duh!, oh yeah, God.

People do become ill and die—too young. Not everyone experiences a healing that doctors cannot explain. Traffic accidents happen. This is a sinful world, and I read these verses and mumble about, “well, that was long ago in different circumstances and, you know, that stuff doesn’t happen with me, and God isn’t really interested in me, and so on and so on…”

Nothing is too hard for the LORD. That is still applicable today. Thank you God.