August 17, 2026

GOD’S WORD FOR TODAY:

“When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, ‘I AM, God Almighty. Walk before Me faithfully and be blameless. Then I will make My covenant between Me and you, and I will greatly increase your numbers.’” (Genesis 17.1-2)

REFLECTION ON GOD’S WORD:

As you might gather, patience is not as easy as it sounds. How many times has someone asked you or told you to be patient? Patience does not mean the absence of doing something as if one is merely sitting without thought or action until what is desired happens. Patience is not a passive word. Patience requires effort and focus and determination. Do not fool yourself into thinking that Abram gave up hope on what God had promised at his first calling nor reaffirmed as he resettled back in Canaan following his failed mission to Egypt. They were all calls to action with the only time constraint being “walk blameless before Me and be faithful to the calling by which I have called you. We have seen that when Abram was faithful in following God’s command, blessings were in abundance and he most certainly was blessed in order to be a blessing. We have also seen that when he acted upon his own volition, things did not fare so well. I would believe, mighty ones of God, the same is true for you and me. We may not always see it in the short-term experience, but the reality is the long- term impact will make itself known more than we care to imagine; even if we do not live that long!

So, what is the solution? In the time we are waiting for answers, resolutions, opportunities and conclusions for new beginnings to be made known, we should be doing what God asks for us on a daily basis. There are minimum daily believer requirements. There is no day when we should not be doing the work of the Lord. Following the words of Peter, “Whatever we do, in word or deed, let us do it for the glory of God.” Imagine what the world would look like if just the Church set its course 24/7/365.25 by this paradigm? Can you think of the places where you could have done something different that would better serve the will of God for your life or the lives of others? I know I can. I know it is a struggle. But it deserves our greatest attention. How do I see that lesson addressed in the passage of scripture being reflected on for nearly the past week? Abram focused on raising Ishmael as his son for thirteen years. While, as I have mentioned previously, Abram did not have the covenant of circumcision yet and there was no order for Bar-mitzvah (or Bat-mitzvah), there was a rite of passage which Abram knew had to be administered and prepared for. For thirteen years, he was devoted to doing that very thing and maintaining his own community as was established in his name. He did not veer from right to left. He maintained a direct focus on doing what he was called to do as a man, a father, a husband, a leader and a follower of God. By the time Abram was ninety-nine and Ishmael was thirteen, then God revisited him and reestablished the course of his promised life. Ninety-nine years!! We can’t even imagine living that long must less waiting for the promised legacy of a son and a heritage of descendants too numerous to count. We definitely have too much time on our hand that we are not using wisely. (I will give an example we see every day: those who speed and lane dive and run red lights and cut people off because they are in such a hurry. When they get home, they sit down and accomplish nothing being emotionally exhausted from all those people who kept them from arriving “on time.”)

Mighty ones, we must learn to be actively patient seeking to do God’s will in the smallest as well as the greatest of opportunities and all opportunities in between.

TODAY’S PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING:

Father, in these days we are finding the need to believe even more than ever before. We all have known trouble, some in greater ways than others, but You are offering us the assurance that we will not be consumed by it forever. Regardless of the “time” we are in and the “time” we have been given, we ask for Your Holy Spirit which Jesus asked You to share with us, to lead and guide and direct us in the paths we should go. Teach us what we still need to learn. Empower us to put that learning into action. Bless our actions not as a works righteousness endeavor, but as righteous works of faith, hope and love in Jesus’ name. AMEN.