God told Abraham that through his offspring all the nations would be blessed. God promised Abraham he would have a son, an heir through whom to pass his inheritance and blessing to future generations. But Abraham was 100 years old: his wife Sara was 90 years old and barren.

Sarah came up with a plan: through her hand maiden Hagar, Abraham would have his firstborn son. Abraham went along with the plan and Ishmael was born. But God told Abraham that his covenant would be with the Abraham’s son born to Sarah not Hagar.

What did Ishmael do wrong? Was he a man like Cain, bitter, disobedient, and full of hate? No God blessed Ishmael in Chapter 16,17, and 21. It says that God was with the lad. His presence, his provision, his protection, his guidance was with Ismael, but his covenant was through Isaac, the son of the promise.

Both Isaac and Ishmael enjoyed Gods blessing, but it was through Isaac that the Word of God and the Messiah would come and the world would be blessed. Can we by our works, our prayers, our fasting, and our tears alter the plan of God for our lives? Ishmael’s name means “God has heard.” Yes God heard. He did not ignore Ismael. God heard his tears and the tears of his mother, God provided for him and blessed him, but it did not change the fact that the promise was to go through Isaac.

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.” Jeremiah 29:11

Can we trust that God will direct us to our expected end? Or do we tell Him about all the training and preparation and trials we have been through to prepare us for the ministry that we have in mind? This web site, Expected End, I set up originally back in 2002. At first it was to be a prison ministry. Later, I changed the focus to spiritual gifts, later I changed it to diet and health, then back to spiritual gifts, most recently, on faith and prayer. Each time, I focused on what I thought was my gift or area of expertise rather than what God had in mind for me. All those things were a part of who I am and what I wanted to do for the Kingdom. But I missed the deep down in my heart joy that comes from service that is in the perfect will of God and the anointing that follows to perform God’s will.