WAIT — 🫘 Sarai Bean!

When You Want the Promise Now, but God Says “Not Yet.”

Oh Sarah… oh Sarah!

Girl, you couldn’t wait just a little longer?

You had to take matters into your own hands, huh?

Why, Sarah… why?

But before we judge her too fast, let’s be honest — she looks a whole lot like us.

We rush.

We push.

We panic when God doesn’t show up on our schedule.

We’re Generation “Right Now,” the “Hurry Up, Jesus!” crew, trained to expect instant answers, instant breakthroughs, and instant promises.

But God is not our pit-stop.

He’s not our drive-thru window.

He is not required to move according to the clock we carry or the timeline we created.

Just like Sarah, we struggle with waiting.

Just like Sarah, we get impatient.

Just like Sarah, we try to help God do what only God can do.

We forget what Scripture tells us:

“Be anxious for nothing…”

But whew — don’t that sound just like us?

Impatient. Rushing. Moving too fast. Trying to force the promise before it fully forms.

And when we get tired of waiting, we grab the situation, run ahead of God, and end up creating problems we were never meant to manage.

But hear this:

The promise is still coming.

God didn’t forget.

He’s just preparing you for what He already prepared for you.

So don’t be a Sarah Bean — birthing something God never told you to build.

Be ready. Be steady. And wait for the manifestation.

The promise belongs to you… but the timing belongs to Him.

Let’s dive into the story of Sarai - Known as Sara Bean!

Genesis 16:1–2 (KJV)

🌿 The Promise

Let me be honest for a moment…

I am a Sarai Bean too.

I’m getting older in years, and time feels like it’s sprinting while I’m standing still. My gray hairs are whispering, “Wisdom is ready to be shared,” but everything around me seems quiet. Silent. Still.

I look around and see friends advancing in their careers…

I see the younger generation moving in their purpose with lightning speed…

And here I am — waiting, watching, wondering:

“God… when is it my turn?”

And yet, no matter how loud my questions get, God keeps responding with the same word:

“Wait.”

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📖 Sarai’s Struggle Mirrors Ours

Waiting is one of the hardest tests of faith, because waiting exposes everything we try to hide:

• our insecurities

• our impatience

• our fear of missing out

• our fear of being overlooked

• our fear that God forgot

Sarai knew that feeling intimately.

God had already spoken a covenant promise — Abram would father nations. But Sarai’s reality preached a different sermon. Her womb was barren. Her age was rising. Her body felt like it was betraying her destiny.

She believed the promise…

She just didn’t believe the timing.

Before we judge her, we have to admit:

We do the same thing.

We hold onto the promise with one hand

—but with the other, we’re trying to “fix” it, rush it, or force it.

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🌾 Why Would Sarai Bean Not Wait?

📜 When the Wait Feels Too Long

Genesis 16 paints the picture perfectly:

Now Sarai Abram’s wife bare him no children: and she had an handmaid… whose name was Hagar.

And Sarai said unto Abram… go in unto my maid; it may be that I may obtain children by her.

And Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai.

Right here is where Sarai tried to fortify the promise — to make it happen by human effort instead of divine timing.

Doesn’t that sound just like us?

God gives the vision.

God speaks the word.

But when things don’t move fast enough, we start moving pieces around, grabbing substitutes, chasing shortcuts, and stepping into roles God never assigned us.

We call it “helping God.”

But truthfully?

It’s fear wearing spiritual clothing.

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🌱 Trying to Force the Promise Only Complicates the Process

Sarai’s plan did produce something — but it didn’t produce the promise.

Ishmael was born out of Sarai’s impatience, not God’s instruction.

And anytime we try to birth something God didn’t authorize:

• confusion follows,

• frustration grows,

• relationships strain,

• and the wait becomes heavier, not easier.

But hear this with your spirit:

What God promised cannot be replaced by what you manufacture.

The promise God has for you doesn’t need your help — it needs your obedience.

It doesn’t need your strategy — it needs your surrender.

It doesn’t require your clock — it follows His divine calendar.

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🌾 Why Sarai Struggled to Wait on the Promise

1️⃣ She Let Time Talk Louder Than God

Years had passed since God’s promise was first spoken.

The calendar changed, but her reality didn’t.

Silence can feel like denial.

Delay can feel like dismissal.

Sarai looked at the clock instead of the covenant — and time convinced her the promise was slipping away.

Genesis 16:1–2 shows her conclusion:

“The Lord has kept me from having children…”

She didn’t lose faith in God… she lost faith in His timing.

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2️⃣ She Interpreted Barrenness as Finality

Sarai was barren, and in her day, barrenness was viewed as shameful, humiliating, and hopeless.

Her condition spoke louder than God’s declaration.

When your reality contradicts your revelation, you can feel disqualified from the very thing God said belongs to you. Sarai believed God could do it — she just didn’t believe He would do it for her.

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3️⃣ She Tried to Fix What Only God Could Fulfill

Like many of us, Sarai tried to “help God out.”

Instead of waiting, she strategized.

Instead of trusting, she intervened.

Instead of resting, she rushed the promise.

She offered Hagar to Abram as a human solution to a divine promise.

But whenever we try to manufacture a miracle, we produce a mess.

Sarai’s impatience birthed Ishmael — a child of human decision, not divine direction.

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4️⃣ She Forgot That God’s Promise Isn’t Limited by Human Ability

Sarai was 75 when the journey began.

By all natural reasoning, she was past the age of childbirth.

But God specializes in doing what flesh cannot perform.

Sarai waited… until waiting became unbearable.

She forgot that the promise wasn’t dependent on her body — it depended on God’s power.

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5️⃣ She Allowed Fear to Override Faith

Fear says:

“What if it never happens?”

Faith says:

“Even now, God is able.”

Sarai let the “what if’s” whisper louder than the “God said.”

And when fear rises, impatience grows.

🌟 Revelation: The Promise Will Still Find You

What makes Sarai’s story breathtaking is this:

Even though she doubted…

Even though she rushed…

Even though she created chaos…

God STILL kept His promise.

He didn’t cancel His word because she wavered.

He didn’t revoke it because she rushed.

He didn’t abandon it because she tried to fix it.

The promise was bigger than her mistake.

God returned in Genesis 18 and reaffirmed His word:

“Sarah shall have a son.”

And in Genesis 21, the promise came — right on time.

🌟 The Good News: God Doesn’t Cancel the Promise

Even though Sarai rushed…

Even though she doubted…

Even though she created a mess…

God still kept His promise.

He still visited her.

He still blessed her womb.

He still opened the door at the appointed time.

The promise didn’t die because the wait was long —

and your promise won’t either.

This is where Sarah tried to fortify (or force) the promise by doing things her own way instead of waiting for God’s timing.

Sound like us trying to force the promise by doing things our own way.

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🌱 Life Application: What About You?

Maybe you’re in a season where the promise feels delayed.

You’ve prayed, cried, believed, and waited… and still see nothing happening.

Hear this:

• Delay is not denial.

• Barrenness is not final.

• Your mistake did not cancel your miracle.

• God’s promise does not expire.

If God said it — He will perform it.

Not by your strength, but by His sovereignty.

Sometimes God allows the wait so the glory belongs entirely to Him.

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🙏🏽 Closing Prayer

Heavenly Father,

Thank You for every promise You have spoken over our lives. Strengthen our hearts when the wait feels long. Help us to trust Your timing even when our circumstances seem contrary. Forgive us for the moments we tried to fix what only You can fulfill. Remind us that Your promises are yes and amen, and You never fail. Give us the patience of faith and the courage to wait well.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.

📚 Author Bio

Lauretta Scott is a faith-inspired writer, devotional creator, and founder of iPublishub-Books, where she uses storytelling, transparency, and biblical wisdom to uplift and empower readers. Known for her humor, honesty, and heartfelt spiritual insight, Lauretta writes to encourage those navigating life’s in-between places — the seasons of waiting, stretching, and becoming.

Her stories remind readers that God’s promises never expire and His timing is always perfect. Whether through her devotionals, inspirational blogs, or relatable character-driven narratives, Lauretta’s mission is simple: to help others see God’s hand in every chapter of their journey.

She continues to write with purpose, passion, and a bold faith that inspires others to hold on, wait well, and believe again.