Forever Home in the Eternal Family of God

18 January 2024

Reading From Genesis 19-21

“Early the next morning Abraham took some food and a skin of water and gave them to Hagar. He set them on her shoulders and then sent her off with the boy. She went on her way and wandered in the Desert of Beersheba. 

When the water in the skin was gone, she put the boy under one of the bushes. Then she went off and sat down about a bowshot away, for she thought, “I cannot watch the boy die.” And as she sat there, she began to sob.

God heard the boy crying, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What is the matter, Hagar? Do not be afraid; God has heard the boy crying as he lies there. Lift the boy up and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation.”

Then God opened her eyes and she saw a well of water. So she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink.”

–Genesis 21:14-19

     For the second time we find Hagar alone in the desert.[1]  This time she is with her son and has been cast out of the household of Abraham and Sarah.  Ishmael had been mocking Isaac during a celebration held in Isaac’s honor.  This angered Sarah and she told Abraham to shun Hagar and Ishmael.  Early one morning Abraham gave Hagar and his son food and water and sent them away.  This grieved Abraham because Ishmael was his son, and the situation reminds me that the Bible is filled with stories of God intervening in the lives of imperfect people living in a fallen world.  Not everything that is said or done in the Bible is how God wanted it to be or how He wants us to live, but we do see His grace and mercy shining through the darkness and His provision and plan coming together even when it seems like the situation is a mess.[2]  We discover treasures in the trash of life.[3]  The food and water runs out for Hagar and Ishmael and so the mother lays her son under a bush and walks a short distance away so she won’t have to watch her son die.  It’s in that moment of desperation that God steps in.[4]

     It wasn’t Hagar’s fault that she had been used by Sarah and Abraham.  She was an Egyptian slave who served Sarah, it’s not as though she had much of a choice.  Like polygamy, slavery was not something that God had ordained, it was a cultural practice of the time.  God intervenes in people’s lives no matter what time, place, or society they find themselves in.  In both times when Hagar felt alone, she wasn’t alone.  God was with her and knew all about what was going on in her life and the life of her son.[5]  He comforted her and provided for them.  “She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: ‘You are the God who sees me,’ for she said, ‘I have now seenthe One who sees me.’”[6]  No matter what my circumstance is, God sees me, God sees you.  He knows me better than I know myself[7] and knows the intricacies, complications and layers of all things in all times in all places.[8]  He is omniscient (all-knowing),[9] omnipresent (He is everywhere at once)[10] and omnipotent (all-powerful).[11]  Even when it seems like no one understands what I’m going through, God does.[12]  Even when I feel all alone, He is with me.  Hagar needed God’s perspective.  May He open our eyes to see the well right in front of us.  He sees you, He loves you, and He is able to meet you right where you’re at.

“God, thank you for the story of Hagar and Ishmael.  You reveal bits and pieces of Your character through the stories of the Bible, and I am grateful for who You are.  It is so easy for me to get caught up in how things look around me and how messed up the world is.  I pray that You will open my eyes and that I will see the evidence of Your presence and provision and give You the glory.  You see all Your children and You provide for Your eternal family.  I praise You not only for what You do for me, but more than that, just for being You.  Thank You Jesus, Amen.”

I sought the Lord, and he answered me;
    he delivered me from all my fears.
Those who look to him are radiant;
    their faces are never covered with shame.
This poor man called, and the Lord heard him;
    he saved him out of all his troubles.
The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him,
    and he delivers them.

Taste and see that the Lord is good;
    blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.  Fear the Lord, you his holy people,
    for those who fear him lack nothing.

–Psalm 34:4-9

Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” 

–Hebrews 13:5

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[1] Genesis 16:7, 21:14

[2] Psalm 34:4, Ecclesiastes 3:11, Romans 8:28

[3] Genesis 50:20, II Corinthians 4:7

[4] Psalm 31:15, Ecclesiastes 3:1, Galatians 4:4-5

[5] Psalm 34:15

[6] Genesis 16:13

[7] Luke 12:7

[8] Psalm 139:13-16

[9] I John 3:20, Psalm 147:5, 139:4, Job 37:16

[10] I Kings 8:27, Psalm 113:4-6, 139:7-12, Jeremiah 23:23-24

[11] I Chronicles 29:11, Matthew 19:26, Hebrews 1:3, Jeremiah 32:17, Isaiah 40:28

[12] John 11:35, Hebrews 4:15