Mission: Amazing

Sarah Laughed

Have you ever heard something about your life, what someone said was possible for you and your reaction was to laugh? Because the mere notion was so ridiculous that laughter was the only appropriate response? Because your dream for that possibility had practically died?

During my devotional time this morning, I re-read the story of Sarah, Abraham’s wife, and her encounter with the three mysterious visitors (Gen 18:1-15). In this story, Sarah is old and well past her childbearing years. Many years before, God had promised to make Abraham’s descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky, but, despite Sarah’s best efforts (and some misguided efforts…*cough*…Hagar) to help Abraham produce an heir, at this point in her story, the hope of that promise seemed dim. Enter the three visitors who are having a conversation outside with Abraham and Sarah is eavesdropping in her nearby tent. One of the visitors declares that when they return next year, Sarah will have a son. Sarah’s reaction?? To Laugh.

“After I am worn out…will I now have this pleasure?” This is what Sarah thinks as she laughs.

Have you ever felt worn out? Waiting on a dream that’s been planted in your heart? Have you ever laughed at the ridiculousness of a stranger’s declaration about what they see is possible in you?

Ever since I was a small child, I had a dream of being on stage in some form or fashion. (In fourth grade, if you had asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up – my response would have been “a backup dancer for MC Hammer.” Yep.) I have had many people, both friends and strangers, tell me over the years that it was possible for me. At first, I believed them, and then slowly that dream faded. I must have fabricated the promise in my heart. Not for me, I must have messed up something, somewhere.

I’m sure Sarah felt the same way. I bet you have, too.

Most of us know the rest of her story, that despite her seemingly impossible circumstances, Sarah had a son a year after the encounter with the visitors.

Do you have a dream that you’ve been nurturing in your heart? That when spoken out loud, you laugh to yourself at the ridiculousness?

Don’t give up. God is good and is faithful to his promises.

In Hebrews 11, often referred to as the faith hall of fame, Sarah is named among Noah and Abraham and Moses as living by faith. “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.”

She’s named in the faith hall of fame, even after laughing at God and his promise to her.

My lesson in this? True to scripture, even with faith the size of a mustard seed, even when we think our dream is impossible, with God we can move mountains.

As for me, my dream of being on stage morphed from doing the running man behind a hip-hop star to being an actress to being a motivational speaker, and my faith in that dream ebbed and flowed. God’s faithfulness, however, never wavered and never changed. Now in my 40’s, I get share with people my passion for personal development on both the physical and virtual stage. And I know this is only the beginning of what God has in store for me.

“Now the Lord was gracious to Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah what he has promised…Sarah said, ‘God has brought me laughter, and everyone who hear about this will laugh with me.’” Gen 21:1-6

If God has planted a dream in your heart, don’t give up. Laugh, if you must, but keep your faith, no matter how small, and look forward with hope to the day when you laugh with joy.