Boon and Bounty Awaiting the Barren

The boon and bounty awaiting the barren

Incredible, indescribable, unspeakable

But requiring calm, trust in the face of storm

Requiring passionate, importunate prayer.

Abraham and Sarah were in this difficult place

But at the set time they got laughter- Isaac

Isaac and Rebekah were in this stony place

Isaac prayed with all his heart and twins came.

Jacob was in this desert place with Rachel

He trusted God and Joseph- fruitful bow- came.

Hannah was in the valley of valleys and agonised

God answered her prayer by giving her Samuel.

Her horn was exalted as she smiled at her enemies.

Manoah and his wife were quarantined in this prison

But God had mercy on them and gave them Samson.

Zachariah and Elizabeth were marooned in this land

God turned the table and gave them John the Baptist.

Therefore sing, O barren one

You who has borne no fruit

More shall be the children of the barren

That the woman who has a husband.

Sing, O Desolate

The Lord will not forget you.

Enlarge the place of your dwelling

Spread out spare not

Lengthen your cord and strengthen your stakes.

Trust that you will not rust

The first shall be the last

And the last shall be the first.

³⁰   But Sarai was barren; she had no child.Gen11:30

Be Patient

‘The Patient dog eats the fattest bone.’

²     But Abram said, “Lord GOD, what will You give me, seeing I go childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?”

³     Then Abram said, “Look, You have given me no offspring; indeed one born in my house is my heir!”

⁴     And behold, the word of the LORD came to him, saying, “This one shall not be your heir, but one who will come from your own body shall be your heir.”

⁵     Then He brought him outside and said, “Look now toward heaven, and count the stars if you are able to number them.” And He said to him, “So shall your descendants be.”Gen15:1-5

 

Resist the temptation to help God

 

‘If you look for a short cut it could cut you short.’

‘A child of the flesh will turn out to be a thorn in your flesh.’

 

¹     Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. And she had an Egyptian maidservant whose name was Hagar.

²     So Sarai said to Abram, “See now, the LORD has restrained me from bearing children. Please, go in to my maid; perhaps I shall obtain children by her.” And Abram heeded the voice of Sarai.

³     Then Sarai, Abram’s wife, took Hagar her maid, the Egyptian, and gave her to her husband Abram to be his wife, after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan.

⁴     So he went in to Hagar, and she conceived. And when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress became despised in her eyes.

Gen16:1-4

 

 

God has a set time and He is a God of integrity

 

       And the LORD visited Sarah as He had said, and the LORD did for Sarah as He had spoken.

²     For Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.

³     And Abraham called the name of his son who was born to him — whom Sarah bore to him — Isaac.

Gen21:1-3

 

Prayer works wonders pray for your barren womb to be opened

 

Expect a double portion for your trouble

 

²¹   Now Isaac pleaded with the LORD for his wife, because she was barren; and the LORD granted his plea, and Rebekah his wife conceived.

²²   But the children struggled together within her; and she said, “If all is well, why am I like this?” So she went to inquire of the LORD.

²³   And the LORD said to her: ” Two nations are in your womb, Two peoples shall be separated from your body; One people shall be stronger than the other, And the older shall serve the younger.”

²⁴   So when her days were fulfilled for her to give birth, indeed there were twins in her womb.

²⁵   And the first came out red. He was like a hairy garment all over; so they called his name Esau.

²⁶   Afterward his brother came out, and his hand took hold of Esau’s heel; so his name was called Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when she bore them.

Gen25

Beautiful but barren

 

¹⁷   Leah’s eyes were delicate, but Rachel was beautiful of form and appearance.

³¹   When the LORD saw that Leah was unloved, He opened her womb; but Rachel was barren.

Gen29:17,31

 

1  Now when Rachel saw that she bore Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister, and said to Jacob, “Give me children, or else I die!”

 

God remembers the barren.

 

Do not fall into the  trap of blaming others for your barrenness. That is a snare of the enemy.

 

²²        Then God remembered Rachel, and God listened to her and opened her womb.

²³        And she conceived and bore a son, and said, “God has taken away my reproach.”

²⁴        So she called his name Joseph, and said, “The LORD shall add to me another son.”

²⁵        And it came to pass, when Rachel had borne Joseph, that Jacob said to Laban, “Send me away, that I may go to my own place and to my country.

 

Gen30:1, 22-25

 

 

²     Now there was a certain man from Zorah, of the family of the Danites, whose name was Manoah; and his wife was barren and had no children.

³     And the Angel of the LORD appeared to the woman and said to her, “Indeed now, you are barren and have borne no children, but you shall conceive and bear a son. ²⁴       So the woman bore a son and called his name Samson; and the child grew, and the LORD blessed him.

Judges13:2-3,24

 

Hannah was passionate and importunate and God heard her prayers

You may face ridicule because you are barren.

You may be disdained because you are barren.

Some people may misunderstand you and misinterpret you plight. Never mind. Trust God to turn your table.

Be wise. Keep your eyes on the Lord. Do not envy those who are fruitful.

Expect a boon and bounty from God.

 

¹     Now there was a certain man of Ramathaim Zophim, of the mountains of Ephraim, and his name was Elkanah the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite.

²     And he had two wives: the name of one was Hannah, and the name of the other Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children.

¹⁹   Then they rose early in the morning and worshiped before the LORD, and returned and came to their house at Ramah. And Elkanah knew Hannah his wife, and the LORD remembered her.

²⁰   So it came to pass in the process of time that Hannah conceived and bore a son, and called his name Samuel, saying, “Because I have asked for him from the LORD.”

1Sam1:1-2

 

With God all things are Possible

Your age is no barrier to what God can do. It is not over until He says so.

 

⁶     And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.

⁷     But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both well advanced in years.

 

 

³⁶   Now indeed, Elizabeth your relative has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren.

³⁷   For with God nothing will be impossible.”

 

⁵⁷   Now Elizabeth’s full time came for her to be delivered, and she brought forth a son.

⁵⁸   When her neighbors and relatives heard how the Lord had shown great mercy to her, they rejoiced with her.

 

The Shunamite Woman

⁹     And she said to her husband, “Look now, I know that this is a holy man of God, who passes by us regularly.

¹⁰   Please, let us make a small upper room on the wall; and let us put a bed for him there, and a table and a chair and a lampstand; so it will be, whenever he comes to us, he can turn in there.”

¹¹   And it happened one day that he came there, and he turned in to the upper room and lay down there.

¹²   Then he said to Gehazi his servant, “Call this Shunammite woman.” When he had called her, she stood before him.

¹³   And he said to him, “Say now to her, ‘Look, you have been concerned for us with all this care. What can I do for you? Do you want me to speak on your behalf to the king or to the commander of the army?’ ” She answered, “I dwell among my own people.”

¹⁴   So he said, “What then is to be done for her?” And Gehazi answered, “Actually, she has no son, and her husband is old.”

¹⁵   So he said, “Call her.” When he had called her, she stood in the doorway.

¹⁶   Then he said, “About this time next year you shall embrace a son.” And she said, “No, my lord. Man of God, do not lie to your maidservant!”

¹⁷   But the woman conceived, and bore a son when the appointed time had come, of which Elisha had told her.

¹⁸   And the child grew. Now it happened one day that he went out to his father, to the reapers.

¹⁹   And he said to his father, “My head, my head!” So he said to a servant, “Carry him to his mother.”

²⁰   When he had taken him and brought him to his mother, he sat on her knees till noon, and then died.

²¹   And she went up and laid him on the bed of the man of God, shut the door upon him, and went out.

 

Who was barren got child from a prophecy but the child died soon after at a tender age. She refuse ‘no for an answer.

Has your vision died before it even lived? Trust God for resurrection.

 sermon available  on request

©Fenny West2012

https://inspiration4generations.wordpress.com/2012/07/27/olympic-series-the-race-of-grace-1-preparation/