Does anyone like to wait? Waiting for Christmas, for a baby, for healing, for change… The list is endless. Waiting is a test of our patience and a challenge to our illusion of control. Humanity has changed little in 4,000 years; Abram (Abraham) and Sarai (Sarah) also struggled in God’s waiting room.

A Long Wait for Sarah

The author of Genesis introduced Sarai by her greatest shame, her childlessness (Genesis 11:30). She had failed to accomplish her reason for existence: supplying sons to carry on the family name. Her society blamed her and assumed her barrenness was a judgment from God, a sign of his disfavor. 

When God called 75-year-old Abram to leave Haran, he promised Abram many descendants (Genesis 12:2). Since only Abram heard God’s call, maybe he believed the promise was his alone—not unusual in a patriarchal culture. Soon after he and Sarai arrived in Egypt, Abram allowed Pharaoh to take her as his wife (Genesis 12:10-20).  God protected Sarai by inflicting diseases on Pharaoh and his household until he returned her.

After ten years of waiting, Sarai’s shame remained. At 75, she was tired of waiting. Did she question God’s power to keep his promise? Sarai offered Hagar to Abram, hoping to have children through her maid and erase her shame. (Sarai’s marriage contract might have required such an action.) Although Hagar conceived, Sarai’s plan didn’t bring the peace she expected.

Why did God make Sarai wait? Why does he make us?

• To prepare us: Sarai wasn’t yet ready to be the mother of the promised son. Like Abram, she needed to be a person of faith, not contentious, as her name implied. We, too, have lessons to learn as we wait. Maybe God is working in our lives as fast as we’ll allow.
• To prepare others: Nor was Abram ready. God’s promise wasn’t only for him. Likewise, God’s purposes are not all about us.
• To prepare circumstances: Getting everything and everyone ready requires time.
• To teach us: Through the waiting, God was teaching Abram and Sarai more about himself. Without the wait, they wouldn’t have experienced God’s power to do the impossible.

The Wait Was Almost Over

Twenty-four long years after God’s original promise, he reiterated his pledge to Abram (Genesis 17:1-22). Besides changing Abram and Sarai’s names, God guaranteed he would bless Sarah with a son.

Soon after, three men stopped at Abraham’s tent (Genesis 18:1-15). He hurried to provide the expected hospitality—foot-washing, shade, and food. Sarah baked bread but rather than serve the meal, she disappeared. The visitors questioned Abraham. In Genesis, John Walton suggests Abraham’s curt explanation of Sarah’s absence was due to the purity code of their society. Maybe Sarah retreated to her tent after discovering she was unexpectedly indisposed. Menstruating women could participate neither in food preparation nor social gatherings.

Despite the announcement that Sarah would soon bear a son, Abraham didn’t perceive how vital Sarah was to God and his plan. Once again, Abraham failed to protect her, allowing Abimelek, king of Gerar, to make her part of his harem (Genesis 20). And once again, God protected Sarah, revealing his care for her. 

Possibly, God extended the waiting period because Abraham and Sarah had so much to learn. Nevertheless, his delay wasn’t a denial. Although Abraham and Sarah’s choices might have delayed the fulfillment of God’s promise, they didn’t prevent it. 

What Should We Do in God’s Waiting Room?

Some assume waiting is a passive activity, but God intends us to be active while we wait, faithfully following him. We must ask ourselves what God wants us to learn. Then listen and cooperate with him as he works in, on, and through us. His waiting room can be a place of cleansing and character building, an incubator for our growing faith.

Waiting forces us to recognize we’re not in charge. The time between the promise and the provision requires patience and relinquishment of control. What we do in God’s waiting room reveals our beliefs and priorities. 

Are you waiting on God or is he waiting on you? Is your waiting connected to what he is doing in someone else’s life? Are you responding with a faithful spirit or a fighting one?