Genesis 21:1-7. 1The Lord visited Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did to Sarah as he had promised. 2And Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age at the time of which God had spoken to him. 3Abraham called the name of his son who was born to him, whom Sarah bore him, Isaac… 5Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him. 6And Sarah said, “God has made laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh over me.” 7And she said, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.”
It has been 25 years since God first promised Abraham that he would become a great nation. But finally, after waiting so long, Abraham and Sarah have finally had the baby boy that God promised to them. A baby boy whose name, Isaac, means laughter.
Do you know what your name means? Probably not laughter. Why would Abraham and Sarah name their child something so strange? Well, it goes back to when Sarah first heard God say that she was going to have a baby in Genesis 18. The Bible says that Sarah laughed at God when she heard that. Why? Because she was very old, and very old women can’t have babies anymore. God would have to do a miracle. And he did! Now Sarah’s mocking laughter in Genesis 18 has been completely changed into the laughter of joy and happiness. God has made laughter for her.
The lesson for us from this story is that God always does what he promises. Maybe not right away…Abraham and Sarah waited 25 years. You see, God doesn’t usually do things very quickly. Why not? Because he is more interested in changing our hearts than just giving us what we want. Abraham and Sarah needed to learn how to trust God, and that would take time. And it will take time with you too – your whole life will be spent learning how to trust Jesus.
Always remember, no matter how slowly God does his work in your life, he is always working all things for your good – the goodness of being like Jesus. Just like Abraham and Sarah received a son that brought them joy, we too have received THE Son of God, Jesus, who brings us joy. The reason we can always have happiness in our life is because Jesus is living in our hearts, making us like himself. That’s a promise that will take time, but it is guaranteed to happen. On top of that, Jesus has promised to take us all to Heaven forever. That too might take a while to happen, but it will happen. And when it does we will all be full of everlasting joy!
Our joy and happiness is God’s goal. God wants you to be happy. But mostly, he wants you to be happy in him, trusting him and obeying him. This means that God might need to let you be sad for a while, or confused for a while until we find the joy that comes in trusting him. But in the end there will be laughter when we see Jesus.
To live with Jesus is to live in joy and laughter. Jesus said that one day we will be invited by God to enter into the joy of the Lord. What a great day that will be. No more sadness. No more crying. No more sickness or death. And no more waiting. But until that day, let us walk in the joy of the Lord, delighting in his promises to us in Jesus, and let us laugh in the kindness of a God who does all things for his glory and our good.
You: Does Jesus make you happy? Why or why not?
You with Jesus: What promise of Jesus can make you joyful today?
Prayer: Father, fill my heart with the joy of knowing you and being like Jesus. I know that I make you happy, help me to let Jesus make me happy too. Amen.
TLICfamily 