“By faith Sarah herself also received

strength to conceive seed, and she

bore a child when she was past the
age, because she judged Him faithful
who had promised.”
Hebrews 11:11
1 Peter 3:6 tells us we can be Sarah’s
daughters if we do what is right without
being afraid. What does it mean to be a
daughter of Sarah? What qualities do we
want to emulate from her life?
• No one is perfect, aside from Jesus.
• When the Bible tells us to imitate a
person, we are to learn from the good and
bad in that person’s life.
• Sarah battled discouragement in many
areas of her life, but she was victorious
because she, “judged Him faithful who had
promised.”
 Sarai as Wife
Abram was called of God to father a great
nation. Sarai was also part of this plan.
God tells Abram, “I will make you a great
nation; I will bless you and make your
name great; you shall be a blessing” (Gen.
12:2).
 Struggles along the Way
• Move to Canan (Gen. 12:1)
• Famine (Gen. 12:10)
• Side trip to Egypt (Gen. 12:10-14)
• Taken by Egyptian Pharaoh (Gen. 12:14-
20)
• Sarai stood by her man through good
times and bad on this journey.
• As you know, your life will also include
good and bad times. There will be areas of
discouragement.
• Hard times in your life might also be
brought on by parents, siblings, children,
or friends.
2 Corinthians 13:11 says, “Aim for
restoration, comfort one another, agree
with one another, live in peace; and the
God of love and peace will be with you.”
Know that no matter what the cause is of
trying times, God is faithful every minute to
bring you strength and peace.
“Her message to us is, whatever impossible,
unbearable, unusual, unchangeable test
awaits you this day (or for the next 8999
days, or forever!), by faith, we are to reach
one more time for the ‘exceedingly great and
precious promises’ of God (2 Peter 1:4)! Yes,
faith is the better way-indeed, the only way!-
to face the distress of life.” -Elizabeth George
 As Mother-to-Be
• Because God promised Abram he would
father a great nation, Sarai knew she would
bear children.
• But years and years went by without an heir.
• Because Sarai was still childless, she
thought of a plan. (Gen. 16:1-3)
According to pastor and author John
MacArthur, “Sarah apparently reasoned
that since she owned Hagar, if Abraham
fathered a child by Hagar, it would in
effect be Sarah’s child.”
• But God designed marriage to be
between one man and one woman.
• So this polygamy was sinful and would
not have the outcome Sarai wanted.
• In fact, after Hagar conceived Ishmael,
Sarai began to hate her. (Gen. 16:3-6)
 Sarai to Sarah
• God promised Abram again that he would
have a child, through Sarai. He changed
their names to Abraham and Sarah.
• When God told Abraham he would bear a
son this time next year, he laughed
(Genesis 17:17).
• And later when Sarah heard she would
bear a son in her old age, she laughed
(18:12).
John MacArthur writes, “When His time
came for the promise to be fulfilled, no one
would be able to deny that this was indeed
God’s doing. His plan all along was for
Sarah to have her first child in her old age,
after every prospect of a natural fulfillment
of the prophecy was exhausted and after
every earthly reason for hope was
completely dead.”
 Sarah as Mother
• Isaac, which means “he laughs,” was born
to Sarah when Abraham was 100 years
old.
• Sarah said, “God has made me laugh, and
all who hear will laugh with me” (Gen.
21:6).
Elizabeth George writes, “This definitely
was an occasion for joy. Isaac was
Sarah’s reward. He was the child of her
own body, the child of her old age, the
child of God’s promise, the fruit of tested
faith, the gift of God’s grace, and the
heaven-appointed heir.”
In a well known story in Genesis 22, God
tests Abraham’s faith by asking him to
sacrifice Isaac to him. The Bible does not
say if Abraham discussed the instructions
with Sarah. So we don’t know Sarah’s
response.
• We can imagine the joy Isaac brought to
his parents.
• Isaac will inherit the promises of the
covenant between God and Abraham.
• God may have tested their faith to see if it
was God or Isaac they truly worshiped.
This was also a lesson for them in God’s
provision because God supplied a
substitutionary sacrifice. Hundreds of
years later Jesus would be your
substitutionary sacrifice.
“Many years later another Son would climb
another hill, carrying wood on his back.
Like Isaac, he would trust his Father and
do what his Father asked. He wouldn’t
struggle or run away. Who was he? God’s
Son, his only Son- the Son he loved. The
Lamb of God.” –The Jesus Storybook
Bible
• When Sarah was 127, she died.
• Abraham and Isaac mourned her death.
• Her life was marked by highs and lows.
But she remained faithful. She is
remembered not for her mistakes, but for
her victories.
 Areas of Discouragement
• As Wife
• As Mom-to-Be
• As Mother
 Faith is Our Weapon against
Discouragement
• As Eugenia Price writes, “We think rightly
of Abraham as the first man of great faith,
of Sarah, as the first woman of great faith.
They were.”
 God is faithful to His promises to us.
• Romans 8:28 “And we know that God
causes all things to work together for
good to those who love God, to those who
are called according to His purpose.”
• Psalm 55:22 “Cast your burden upon the
Lord and He will sustain you; He will
never allow the righteous to be shaken.”
• Isaiah 41:10, “Do not fear, for I am with
you; Do not anxiously look about you, for
I am your God. I will strengthen you,
surely I will help you. Surely I will uphold
you with My righteous right hand.”
• 1 Peter 5:7, “Cast all your anxieties on
Him, because He cares for you.”