Scripture: Genesis 16 v 2:
"And Sarai said unto Abram, Behold now, the Lord hath restrained me from bearing: I pray thee, go in unto my maid; it may be that I may obtain children by her: and Abram hearkened unto the voice of Sarai....(v 16)..Hagar bare Ishmael to Abram."
Our God makes His will very clear to us. He speaks into our heart that which He proposes for us to do. In the above case, He told Abram that he would be the father of many generations of people. His wife was barren and over 80 years old. They agreed that Hagar should be the mother of Abram's son. It is known today as 'Making an Ishmael'.
God visited Abram and changed his and Sarai's names to Abraham and Sarah which led to the birth of Isaac in their old age. Isaac was the father of Jacob who had 12 sons which became the 12 patriarchs of the 12 tribes of Israel.
Ishmael, Abraham's son through Hagar the handmaid, also had 12 sons from which the main Arab nations sprang. These claim that Ishmael was Abraham's firstborn son and therefore they are the true inheritors of the land of Israel. But God's covenant was not with Ishmael it was with Jacob.
Romans 9 v 7: "Neither , because they are the seed of Abraham, are they all children: but, In Isaac shall thy seed be called."
And neither side will give way!
I
We 'make an Ishmael' every time we use some handy practical substitute to fulfil prophecy or an instruction from God, causing a warp in His perfect plan. In our cleverness we add a short cut, or subtract a seemingly inconvenient obstacle to "help God get it right". Our Lord God doesn't need our help! We are instruments He uses to get the job done but if that instrument is busy doing its own thing, He chooses another.
It results in hurt, confusion, anger, jealousy and other fleshly manifestations that will require much ministry and healing to restore the person. As Israel is experiencing, we must too, there are long term unhappy consequences when we alter and amend God's plan for us. In every case prevention is better than cure. It is the problem called Self will.
So if you are busy with something right now and realise you are on your way to making an Ishmael now is your opportunity to scrap it and let God bring it to pass in His own time and way. He really knows what He is doing and every seeming obstacle is actually there for us to put ourselves right for miracles to happen. Surrender your self will for God's will to prevent calamities. We really don't know what's best until we discern it from the Holy Spirit.
Prayer: Father God I acknowledge that Your ways are higher than my ways. It is vain for me to try to improve on Your perfect will. Forgive me for insulting Your intelligence and I release everything You have initiated into Your hands for a perfect outcome. In Jesus' name. Amen.
