There are Bible stories I heard as a child, and it wasn’t until I was an adult that I really sat with the gravity of what the story represented. The story of Sarai, Abram, and Hagar from the sixteenth chapter of Genesis is one of those stories. I mean, talk about drama!
In case you don’t know, here is a summary, Carrie Lea style:
Abram is Sarai’s hubby, man of God, and a shepherd-slash-warrior on the low. The Lord told him to leave everything he knew and to go to a faraway land. Abram took his wife, Sarai, and his nephew (whom he had no business taking but that’s a story for another day) and traveled to an unknown destination. The Lord promised Abram he would be a father of many nations. The only thing is, Abram and Sarai didn’t have any kids because Sarai was barren. Therefore, Abram had to repeatedly stand in faith concerning God’s promise of this future nation. In the meantime, Sarai is incredibly desperate to have some kiddos with her husbae, and her faith is running on E.
Enter Hagar.
Hagar is Sarai’s maid, one she acquired from an unlawful detour through Egypt when Abram’s faith was having a weak moment. Abram went to Egypt due to a famine. Since Sarai was fine-fine, Abram lied about Sarai being his wife and instead said she was his sister (which is technically true, but we don’t have time to get into all that tuh-day). He lied so Pharaoh wouldn’t kill him just to get to Sarai. God then hit Pharaoh’s house with a plague because of Sarai being there. In a haste to get rid of the plague, Pharaoh gave Sarai back along with a bunch of other stuff and told them to hit the road with the quickness. Hagar was a part of the “stuff” Abram acquired during this time in Egypt.
When Sarai’s desperation reached its peak, she offered up her handmaiden, Hagar, to Abram as his concubine to birth a child for him. And Abram agreed to it! (Chile, it couldn’t have been me.) But when Hagar became pregnant, homegirl forgot her position and started looking down her nose at Sarai. Sarai responded with disdain and blamed Abram, but he was like, “Aye, that sounds like a you problem. Do whatever you need to do to handle that.” Sarai responded like the scorned, bitter woman she was at the time and treated Hagar so badly, Hagar fled from them. She was a pregnant woman wandering out in the wilderness with no place to go.
Whew. Did you get all that?
I have written about Sarai’s point of view on this whole issue before. (Click here for that read.) This time, I want to highlight Hagar’s point of view and how tenderly God deals with her.
Imagine wandering alone in the wilderness as a pregnant slave with nowhere to go. I have no doubt Hagar was upset, confused, bitter, and hopeless. But God, in His infinite mercy, met Hagar exactly where she was and said, “Hagar, Sarai’s maid, where have you come from and where are you going?”
I am so amazed by this part of the story. For one, God spoke directly to Hagar, a woman who was most likely born into slavery and forced to live a life based on who she served. She probably had worshiped other gods in the past and didn’t know the God of Abram. In the entire story of Abram and Sarai, God never spoke directly to Sarai. He always spoke through Abram concerning Sarai. But Hagar didn’t have a husband or a covering to which God could speak or provide direction through. The fact that God would speak to this Egyptian slave who did not know Him showed His compassion, love, and sovereignty.
Two, God asked Hagar two questions, “where have you come from and where are you going?” When God asks questions, it’s never because He doesn’t already know the answer. He’s the Omniscient God. He knows all things. Therefore, these questions were for Hagar’s benefit. He wanted her to pause, think, and consider, without the deception of her emotions, what she was really doing.
Have you ever had God ask you a question in the midst of your drama or while you were wandering in the wilderness of life? His questioning may be a gentle way of illuminating the real issue in order to address the condition of our hearts.
One of Hagar’s heart conditions was related to submission. Therefore, God instructed her to return to Sarai and submit to her authority. The old Carrie in me shudders at that instruction but the new, faith-filled Carrie knows that obedience glorifies the Lord and expresses my love to Him. I also know that if God instructs it, He has a plan that will work for my good and His glory.
And while not easy, good is exactly what He promised Hagar. He told her how He would greatly multiply her descendants because He had given heed to her afflictions.
Wow. God saw her, recognized her affliction, dealt with her heart condition, and gave her a promise. How beautiful.
I’ve had more than one Hagar moment in my life. But God has always been true to His word, meeting me in my wilderness and seeing me through eyes of love, mercy, and compassion. Some of you may be in the midst of a Hagar moment. Your drama may be at an all-time high while your hope is at an all-time low. You might be tempted to run away from it all. Please know God sees you, He cares and He’ll meet you exactly where you’re at. He’s done it before and is sure to do it again.
