THE “ISHMAEL” THAT SMELLS: 3 SIGNIFICANT WAYS TO AVOID HIM

In Genesis 12, we read of the call of God to Abraham. God said to him, “I will make you a great nation”. This was the point where God planted the seed. In Genesis 15, we see Abraham complaining vehemently to God, saying, “God, what will you give me since I go childless…?” In response, God reassures him that He is still in control. God gives Abraham a picture of the stars and makes a covenant with him. With this reassurance, one would think all these would be enough to settle Abraham and Sarah but no, they weren’t! 

Instead of celebrating while waiting, they began to fret and doubt. In chapter 16 of the same Genesis, Abraham and Sarah became tired of waiting and decided to “help” God move things faster. Sarah offered Abraham her maid, Hagar, and out of that relationship, Ishmael was born. Due to their own unwillingness to wait, they created something in their own strength and because God was not in this plan, Ishmael soon began to smell to Sarah. This is the Ishmael that smells.

In simple words of explanation, the Ishmael that smells is the undesired consequence or end result that trails our mistakes, like we see in the story of Abraham and Sarah above. Many times, like them, we birth “Ishmaels” instead of our “Isaac” because we are unwilling to wait. And when that happens most times, we are left with the responsibility of nurturing our “Ishmael”. Outlined below are 3 significant ways to avoid giving birth to the Ishmael that eventually smells:

1.         Avoid making hasty decisions: What does this mean? Don’t do things in a rush. Search for knowledge! Get information! Make consultations! Read books, if required but don’t make hasty decisions! It could be highly detrimental to your destiny in life. In addition, be careful handling things headlong on your own without God because you often have to nurture things birthed in your own strength yourself, since God was not involved in the first place. If God doesn’t begin it, then he’s not committed to finish it. He only promised in His Word to finish what He begins - and of course, you can hold Him by His Word at this. God never pays for what he does not order for.

2.         Seek God’s consent before making moves: When you read all about the life of Abraham, there is not one record where Abraham or Sarah found any fulfillment in Ishmael. On the contrary, all he brought them was contentions and strife (Genesis 16:12). If you birth an Ishmael, he will never bring you fulfillment. Although Abraham loved Ishmael, he did not get the satisfaction of a dream come true in him.

3.         Exercise patience on God’s promises: If God has promised it to you, then believe He will fulfill His promise, no matter how long it takes. Most times when we birth something in our own strength, we often know that something is missing. Everyone might be rejoicing with us and we might even be smiling too, but deep down inside, there will be lack of fulfillment (Psalm 127:1).  The blessing of God makes rich and adds no sorrow with it (Prov. 10:22). When it is from God, there is a peace that comes with it. Joy and laughter also comes with it because the son of promise always brings laughter.

One of the hallmarks of knowing that we are in God’s will is that whatever he calls us to do, there is enjoyment for it. You and I must understand that God’s plan is better than ours and His timing is better than ours. As a result, let’s learn to wait on God so that we don’t birth an Ishmael that smells. Stay free from the Ishmael that smells!Do you have an opinion on this subject or simply something to add for the benefit of other readers? Please enter your opinion as a comment below. It will highly be appreciated! You can also give your feedback on this post or on any content on this blog by clicking here. Alternatively, you can use the "contact" found in black color on the right hand side of this blog if you have any comments, suggestions, questions or general feedback. In addition, kindly click the "Like" and "Share" buttons below if this article really inspires you. I encourage you, finally, to check out other powerfully inspiring articles (posts) on this blog. Once again, stay free from the Ishmael that smells!

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