Through the story of Abraham, we see what it means to trust God before seeing the outcome. God promised Abraham descendants, a land, and a legacy that would bless generations. Yet many of those promises took years—and even generations—to unfold. Abraham did not always understand how God would fulfill His promises, and he did not live to see every part of them completed. Still, God remained faithful.

When progress feels slow or the results of our work remain unseen, it can be tempting to quit. But a lack of visible results does not mean God is absent or inactive. Faith often means continuing to obey, trust, and move forward while we wait for God's purposes to unfold.

Highlights
What Abraham's story teaches us about trusting God's timing
Why God's promises are not always fulfilled according to our preferred timeline
How Abraham waited years to see the birth of Isaac
Why faith means obeying God even when we do not know the outcome
How discouragement can grow when we focus only on visible results
Why a lack of immediate progress does not mean God is not working
How remembering God's faithfulness can strengthen us while we wait

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Full Transcript Below:

Faith While We Wait
By: Laura Bailey 

Bible Reading:

“I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing.I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” Genesis 12:2-3 (NIV)

“I am done! I have spent hours investing in this ministry, and after a year, still nothing has changed,” I yelled into the air. I’d felt confident in God’s leading me to start this new program for the community, yet everywhere I turned, I was faced with opposition, roadblocks, and general disappointment. 

Admittedly, I am great at starting things but horrible at finishing them– especially when I can’t see the fruits of my labor. I shared with my husband that I was contemplating throwing in the towel; I’d obviously misheard God speaking to my heart. 

My husband, who, thank goodness, is always there to calm me and offer a word of encouragement or a different perspective, gently nudged me to recall what we’d been studying in Sunday School recently. A few months prior, my husband and I began teaching through the book of Genesis, line by line. Just the previous week, we covered God’s promise to Abraham to make him into a great nation. God promises to give Abraham a purpose, a place, and people, but God doesn’t tell him how or when He will fulfill them. ⁠ 

Let’s look at the first part of God’s promise to make Abraham into a great nation. This promise would have been difficult for Abraham to digest because at the time, he and his wife, Sarah, were childless. Abraham did have a son with his female slave, Hagar, but God is clear that he is not the one to whom God will fulfill his promise (Genesis 21:5). Eventually, God does give Sarah and Abraham a child, Isaac, but it is 25 years later! Talk about a test of patience and faith. 

 The Lord also promises, “To your offspring I will give this land (Genesis 12:7). Abraham moves his family from the place they’ve always called home into a foreign land where they are strangers, temporary residents, all on a promise of future ownership. 

Abraham spends his life traveling through the Promised Land as a visitor; he never takes ownership in his lifetime. And, it will be many years before the Israelites inhabit it, after centuries of trials and tribulations. God does make Abraham’s name great so that he can bless the many generations before him. Yet, this doesn’t happen overnight; Abraham dies before he sees the fulfillment of God’s promises. But as we know, God was faithful to keep His promise.

It’s easy to get discouraged when we don’t see earthly results, but that doesn’t mean God isn't at work. God works on His timeline, not ours. Abraham is listed in Hebrews 11 as a man who walked by faith. If you read through Abraham’s story, you will see that he didn’t always walk by faith flawlessly, yet he trusted in God to keep His promises. Abraham obeyed God’s commands without knowing the outcome. 

As I think about Abraham and the numerous others in Scripture who walked by faith, even when they didn’t see results, they continued to press on to what God called them to do. Selfishly, I pray I will be able to see positive movement in ministry visually, but if not, I’ll remind myself that even when I can’t see it, God is faithful. 

Intersecting Faith & Life:

Has God called you to something, but you are struggling to remain faithful? Write down 3 promises that God fulfilled in Scripture and put them somewhere to encourage you when you're wavering. 

Further Reading:

Unwavering Faith Amid Uncertainty 

Hebrews 11

Through the story of Abraham, we see what it means to trust God before seeing the outcome. God promised Abraham descendants, a land, and a legacy that would bless generations. Yet many of those promises took years&mdash;and even generations&mdash;to unfold. Abraham did not always understand how God would fulfill His promises, and he did not live to see every part of them completed. Still, God remained faithful.
When progress feels slow or the results of our work remain unseen, it can be tempting to quit. But a lack of visible results does not mean God is absent or inactive. Faith often means continuing to obey, trust, and move forward while we wait for God's purposes to unfold.
Highlights
<ul data-start="1312" data-end="1780">
<li data-section-id="dk7e9n" data-start="1312" data-end="1373">What Abraham's story teaches us about trusting God's timing</li>
<li data-section-id="qsq8a4" data-start="1374" data-end="1455">Why God's promises are not always fulfilled according to our preferred timeline</li>
<li data-section-id="1ppslwe" data-start="1456" data-end="1508">How Abraham waited years to see the birth of Isaac</li>
<li data-section-id="8i61iz" data-start="1509" data-end="1575">Why faith means obeying God even when we do not know the outcome</li>
<li data-section-id="412ndi" data-start="1576" data-end="1643">How discouragement can grow when we focus only on visible results</li>
<li data-section-id="5uo7vm" data-start="1644" data-end="1711">Why a lack of immediate progress does not mean God is not working</li>
<li data-section-id="3h5zvn" data-start="1712" data-end="1780">How remembering God's faithfulness can strengthen us while we wait</li>
</ul>
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<hr>
Full Transcript Below:
Faith While We Wait By: Laura Bailey&nbsp;
Bible Reading:
&ldquo;I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.&rdquo; Genesis 12:2-3 (NIV)
&ldquo;I am done! I have spent hours investing in this ministry, and after a year, still nothing has changed,&rdquo; I yelled into the air. I&rsquo;d felt confident in God&rsquo;s leading me to start this new program for the community, yet everywhere I turned, I was faced with opposition, roadblocks, and general disappointment.&nbsp;
Admittedly, I am great at starting things but horrible at finishing them&ndash; especially when I can&rsquo;t see the fruits of my labor. I shared with my husband that I was contemplating throwing in the towel; I&rsquo;d obviously misheard God speaking to my heart. My husband, who, thank goodness, is always there to calm me and offer a word of encouragement or a different perspective, gently nudged me to recall what we&rsquo;d been studying in Sunday School recently. A few months prior, my husband and I began teaching through the book of Genesis, line by line. Just the previous week, we covered God&rsquo;s promise to Abraham to make him into a great nation. God promises to give Abraham a purpose, a place, and people, but God doesn&rsquo;t tell him how or when He will fulfill them. ⁠&nbsp;
Let&rsquo;s look at the first part of God&rsquo;s promise to make Abraham into a great nation. This promise would have been difficult for Abraham to digest because at the time, he and his wife, Sarah, were childless. Abraham did have a son with his female slave, Hagar, but God is clear that he is not the one to whom God will fulfill his promise (Genesis 21:5). Eventually, God does give Sarah and Abraham a child, Isaac, but it is 25 years later! Talk about a test of patience and faith.&nbsp;
&nbsp;The Lord also promises, &ldquo;To your offspring I will give this land (Genesis 12:7). Abraham moves his family from the place they&rsquo;ve always called home into a foreign land where they are strangers, temporary residents, all on a promise of future ownership.&nbsp;
Abraham spends his life traveling through the Promised Land as a visitor; he never takes ownership in his lifetime. And, it will be many years before the Israelites inhabit it, after centuries of trials and tribulations. God does make Abraham&rsquo;s name great so that he can bless the many generations before him. Yet, this doesn&rsquo;t happen overnight; Abraham dies before he sees the fulfillment of God&rsquo;s promises. But as we know, God was faithful to keep His promise.
It&rsquo;s easy to get discouraged when we don&rsquo;t see earthly results, but that doesn&rsquo;t mean God isn't at work. God works on His timeline, not ours. Abraham is listed in Hebrews 11 as a man who walked by faith. If you read through Abraham&rsquo;s story, you will see that he didn&rsquo;t always walk by faith flawlessly, yet he trusted in God to keep His promises. Abraham obeyed God&rsquo;s commands without knowing the outcome. 
As I think about Abraham and the numerous others in Scripture who walked by faith, even when they didn&rsquo;t see results, they continued to press on to what God called them to do. Selfishly, I pray I will be able to see positive movement in ministry visually, but if not, I&rsquo;ll remind myself that even when I can&rsquo;t see it, God is faithful.&nbsp;
Intersecting Faith &amp; Life:
Has God called you to something, but you are struggling to remain faithful? Write down 3 promises that God fulfilled in Scripture and put them somewhere to encourage you when you're wavering. Further Reading:
<a href="https://www.crosswalk.com/devotionals/crosswalk-devo/unwavering-faith-amid-uncertainty-the-crosswalk-devotional.html">Unwavering Faith Amid Uncertainty&nbsp;</a>
Hebrews 11

Are you a Christian looking for a daily devotional podcast to encourage, inspire, and convict you in your walk with Christ? 7 days a week, The Crosswalk.com Daily Devotional Podcast offers wisdom and insight for applying Biblical truths to the ups and downs of everyday life. Let's study the Bible together and through the experiences of other believers, learn how to apply the Word of God to our lives.

Here’s just some of what we cover in The Crosswalk Daily Devotional Podcast:

☕️ Why the Tongue Can't Be Tamed (And What to Do about It)
☕️ The Quickest Way to an Attitude Adjustment
☕️ Your Birthday: The Most and Least Important Day of Your Life
☕️ Noticing God's Blessings in the Hardest Moments of Life
☕️ One of the Sneakiest Lies Satan Is Telling the Church
☕️ How to Push Through the Weariness of Prayer
☕️ 3 Steps to Take When Facing Temptation
☕️ What to Remember during a Stressful Election Year

If you love what you're listening to on the podcast, be sure to check out our companion devotional at https://www.crosswalk.com/devotionals/crosswalk-devo/.

Are you a Christian looking for a daily devotional podcast to encourage, inspire, and convict you in your walk with Christ? 7 days a week, The Crosswalk.com Daily Devotional Podcast offers wisdom and insight for applying Biblical truths to the ups and downs of everyday life. Let's study the Bible together and through the experiences of other believers, learn how to apply the Word of God to our lives.
Here’s just some of what we cover in The Crosswalk Daily Devotional Podcast:
☕️ Why the Tongue Can't Be Tamed (And What to Do about It) ☕️ The Quickest Way to an Attitude Adjustment ☕️ Your Birthday: The Most and Least Important Day of Your Life ☕️ Noticing God's Blessings in the Hardest Moments of Life ☕️ One of the Sneakiest Lies Satan Is Telling the Church ☕️ How to Push Through the Weariness of Prayer ☕️ 3 Steps to Take When Facing Temptation ☕️ What to Remember during a Stressful Election Year
If you love what you're listening to on the podcast, be sure to check out our companion devotional at <a href="https://www.crosswalk.com/devotionals/crosswalk-devo/">https://www.crosswalk.com/devotionals/crosswalk-devo/.</a>

7 days a week, The Crosswalk.com Devotional Podcast offers wisdom and insight for applying Biblical truths to the ups and downs of everyday life.

The Crosswalk Devotional: A Daily Devotional Christian Podcast

The Crosswalk Devotional

Faith While We Wait

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/5e27a451-e6e6-4c51-aa03-a7370003783c/clips/327739fa-00f7-429b-a0a9-b4a9012cde14/transcript