Opening the Gates of Heaven Perry Stone

Abraham was seventy-five years of age when God reveled to him that he would have a son who would form a mighty nation. Eleven years later, Abraham and Sarah were still childless. Sarah instructed Abraham to move to Plan B — having a child through her handmaiden. Her action reveals three things that happen when we forget the promises of God. 1. We try to make it happen. After waiting eleven years to conceive a son, Sarah felt it was time to help make the promise a fact. In her eyes she could assist in fulfilling Abraham’s desire for a son. And her plan would be simple. However, her plan caused a family feud that continues to this day in the Middle East between the seed of Ishmael and the seed of Isaac. God’s promises are fulfilled in the flow of God’s perfect timing. 2. We birth something in the flesh. Isaac was a child of the Spirit, and Ishmael was a child of the flesh. When we step out of God’s will, we birth things in our flesh. What is birthed in the flesh must be maintained in the flesh. 3. What we birth becomes a thorn to our blessing. At age thirteen Ishmael mocked Isaac. Hagar’s son was becoming a thorn to Sarah and Isaac. Sarah demanded that Ishmael be separated from Isaac. The flesh needs to be severed from the spirit. Our flesh is our carnal nature. When we lose our