Genesis 17:1
One of the fascinating things about the Bible is the way it handles time. Entire decades can pass in a single sentence. The Scriptures don’t always narrate every moment because the point is often not what happened during the years, but what God was doing through them. That’s exactly what we see in Genesis 17: “When Abram was ninety-nine years old…” (Genesis 17:1).
And just like that, 13 years pass between the end of Genesis 16 and Genesis 17:1. One sentence, and we have over a decade of life that passes without any details or explanation, just silence.
It makes me think about my life. I tend to want God to do great things all the time. While God is always at work, some of our lives might be in “ordinary time.” In fact, some of the best moments in our lives might be ordinary time. Time coaching our kids’ sports teams. Time sitting around a dinner table with good friends. Time early in the morning with a cup of coffee and an open Bible. Time where nothing “significant” happens, nothing that would make a memoir, but the things that make for a rich life.
As I read about this 13-year gap tucked between two verses, I have so many questions about all the life that happened during that time period. I’m struck by that fact just because I don’t read about any word from God. The silence of Genesis 17 does not mean the absence of God.
That’s one of the hardest lessons for us to learn spiritually. We tend to assume that if God feels quiet, He must be distant. If nothing seems to be changing externally, we assume nothing is happening internally. But throughout Scripture, God often does His deepest work in seasons that feel the most ordinary, hidden, or silent. Think about all that happened during those silent years. Abram grew older, and weaker, and probably a lot more aware of his limitations. With every passing year, God’s promise probably seemed more impossible. I’m guessing that was precisely the point. God was slowly stripping Abram of the illusion that he could manufacture the promise himself.
Maybe the extraordinary does happen in ordinary time, but it just happens so slowly that it feels ordinary or normal. We want immediate answers, but God wants mature trust. We want quick breakthroughs, but God wants deep roots. We want clarity, but God wants dependence. I’m convinced that some of the most transformative seasons of our lives happen when it feels like the least is taking place.
Maybe you’re in one of those seasons right now. A season where prayers seem unanswered and promises feel delayed. Don’t mistake silence for absence or normal for ordinary. God is at work… in you… today.
Ryan Paulson
Lead Pastor