Scripture - Rom. 4:18 Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” 19Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead—since he was about a hundred years old—and that Sarah’s womb was also dead. 20Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, 21being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised.
Observation - God promised Abraham a lineage, and into his older years, the promise had yet to be fulfilled. The years brought bareness to his body and his wife's. Yet these verses reveal that he did not waiver on the promise. Regardless of circumstances, Abraham was fully persuaded that God could do what he had promised. We have the story in its entirety. God fulfilled His promise.
Application - faith is something all of us struggle with at times. Though Abraham is the father of faith, we can't dismiss the fact that Abraham himself struggled also, and tried to "help God" in his quest for a son. Faith was something Abraham learned to walk in, much like a pinball makes it's way to the bonus bell. Years and experience helped him to understand how God fulfills his promises. God had given Abraham a specific promise and Abraham made his way toward the fulfillment.
I think we misunderstand what faith looks like. I think we imagine faith to look like someone who hears from God and then is unmoved in his pursuit of the fulfillment, like Superman wading through bad guys, unhindered, unscathed, never questioning - simply plowing through to the goal. Abraham certainly wasn't that! But he did hear God's promise. He believed the integrity of God. And he was committed to God's ability to fulfill the promise, even in his old age.
