Genesis 16:9-13
Then the angel of the Lord told her, “Go back to your
mistress and submit to her.” The angel added, “I will increase your descendants
so much that they will be too numerous to count.”
The angel of the Lord also said to her:
“You are now pregnant
and you will give birth to a son.
You shall name him Ishmael,
for the Lord has heard of your misery.
He will be a wild donkey of a man;
his hand will be against everyone
and everyone’s hand against him,
and he will live in hostility
toward all his brothers.”
and you will give birth to a son.
You shall name him Ishmael,
for the Lord has heard of your misery.
He will be a wild donkey of a man;
his hand will be against everyone
and everyone’s hand against him,
and he will live in hostility
toward all his brothers.”
She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: “You are
the God who sees me,” for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me.”
Comments
Although God had promised Abraham a son, years passed and nothing
happened. Sarah decided that something had to be done, and told one of her
slaves, Hagar, to sleep with Abraham.
Hagar indeed became pregnant and began to look down on childless
Sarah. Unwilling to tolerate such insolence from a slave, Sarah became abusive to
her. Hagar decided her situation was impossible and there was no hope other than
to run away.
God came to Hagar in the midst of her despair with words of hope
and the promise of a remarkable future.
Reflections
God did not deliver Hagar out of her slavery, but gave her the
hope she needed to survive it. Has God ever come to you with words of hope and comfort
in a time of despair? Would you let God lead you to someone who might be encouraged
by your story?
Prayer
Blessed are you, O Lord our God, King of the universe, who sees
our despair and brings words of hope and comfort to us.
Yes, God has led me to someone who really needed encouragement one day and seeing the smile on her face afterwards was the blessing I received in return. Also when I have been down and out usually a total stranger will share their story and I would find a message from God in that moment.
ReplyDeleteThe God who SEES me. I think of my marriage, my lifelong partner, wife, mate - and how often I don't SEE her, We use the term "desensitization" to describe the tendency to not see what is always there. And in not seeing those we say we love - stranger or spouse - we contribute to their despair. In the shelter tonight, I'll trust that those I serve will feel their worth simply because I see them. But gee, I think I need to start at the breakfast table with my wife!
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