When God promised Abraham that he would have a son with Sarah, he falls on the ground in laughter. Sarah also laughed at this impossibly good news. But God wasn't joking, He was serious.
But before promising Abraham that he would have a son with Sarah, God instituted circumcision as a tangible reminder of faith for all the males of Abraham's household. The child they thought was impossible would be one of the first Hebrew males circumcised in this new rite, on the eighth day after his birth. The promise, and this very personal reminder of faith, was about to be passed to the next generation.