A WILDERNESS EXPERIENCE

Gen. 18:14  Is anything too hard for the Lord?

Have you ever had an experience where something became so profoundly real to you that you just knew that God was speaking to your heart through a situation? At the time that happened to me I had been going through what I considered my “wilderness experience” and was desperate to hear from God.  Somehow, I knew He saw my need and wanted to show me some wonderful things and I have never, ever forgotten it. 

To begin my story, one day as I sat at my desk at work, I tuned into a radio broadcast and heard a minister speaking about Hagar, the maidservant of Abraham’s wife, Sarah, from the book of Genesis.  I was so taken with the story that when I got home from work, I decided to do a study of my own about Miss Hagar.  I have loved the story ever since. 

I searched for a new devotional entitled, “Women of the Bible,” that my husband had gotten for me, but I had never used.  When I located my book, I opened it straight to a page where Hagar’s name was the topic for that particular study! Isn’t God awesome! Coincidence? I don’t think so! I believe God wanted me to reflect on the story because of my own situation and to assure me once again that He indeed cared for me in the same way He cared for Hagar so many centuries ago. 

I know He saw me and heard my cry for help and I believe more than ever that He will come to the rescue when we have needs and are in distress.  What did I learn most out of the story?  It confirmed to me more than ever that God is a very real God and not some figment of the imagination.  Secondly, I saw that my Lord is looking after me and loved me more than I even imagined, just as He does you.

Beginning in Genesis 16, Sarah (known at the time as “Sarai”), the wife of Abraham (known at the time as “Abram”), became so desperate to have a child that she had a real brain storm and decided to have a child through her Egyptian maidservant Hagar.  Basically, she was losing patience and not in step with God’s timing.  She tried to help Him out, you might say. Sarah no doubt knew the precious promise God had made to her husband that he would have “many descendants,” but in all reality she knew that as for her and Abraham, their biological clocks were busy ticking away! 

I have found that jumping the gun before God’s promises come to pass never works.  God doesn’t need my help in accomplishing His will so I have learned that I need to take my hands off and let Him do what needs to be done.  He is more than able to accomplish the work Himself.  He can handle things much better than I can anyway, but I must leave things alone and have patience.  (I’m preaching to myself here!)

Sometimes we may have to wait on a promise God gives us and then there are other times our promise may come to pass over night.  And . . . when God makes a promise to us, you can rest assured that He will be faithful to fulfill it.  But as we all know, it’s no fun at all in having to wait for a promise God gives us.  Sarah must have been in such a predicament and desperately wanted to bear Abraham a child, but she had to learn the hard way that what God says He means! 

Hagar had no say so in the situation since she was a slave and commanded to do what her master wanted her to do.  So Sarah gave Hagar to become the wife of Abraham and soon afterwards Hagar realized that she was going to have a child.  Hagar then began to despise her mistress and that didn’t go over very well with Sarah and she decided to talk to Abraham about it.  Abraham told Sarah to do whatever she thought best and she was very unkind to Hagar (no doubt whipping her).  Hagar then fled from Sarah’s presence (Gen. 16:6) and who could blame her anyway? 

Hagar no doubt was confused and wondered what was going to happen to her and her baby she held within.  At the time the angel of the Lord found her she was near a spring in the desert and he asked her where she had come from and where she was going.  Hagar answered and said that she was running away from her mistress.  The angel told her to go back and to submit to Sarah and that He would increase her descendants and they would be too numerous to count.  He also told her that she would bear a son and she was to name him Ishmael, for the “Lord had heard of her misery.”  (Ishmael means “God hears.)  Hagar gave a 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.”  (Gen. 16:13)  Hagar went back and did as the angel said and bore Abraham a son and named him Ishmael. 

This is one part of the story that I love, because I saw how that this little Egyptian slave girl actually recognized “who” God was (and still is today) and even gave Him an awesome name.   She also recognized that He indeed “saw her” and knew all about her needs.  Hagar recognized that there was indeed Someone watching over her and her child.  Even though she was no doubt versed in some mystical Egyptian religion from her childhood and worshipped many strange deities, she found out about the God Abraham and Sarah worshipped in a very real way. 

Unfortunately, things were not a bed of roses after Hagar went back to camp, and, in fact, it was a somewhat “thorny” situation, to be more precise about it. 

Fourteen years passed by and finally the first Mrs. Abraham decided that she had had enough and wanted Hagar and her son out of her sight.  By this time, Sarah had seen God’s “true” promise finally come to pass by bearing Abraham a son name who she named Isaac.

Abraham decided to do what Sarah asked and sent Hagar and Ishmael into the wilderness with only a skin of water and some bread.  It didn’t take long for mother and son to be near the point of death because their provisions had ran out. 

Hagar, not able to bear the sight of her son dying before her very eyes, laid him down under a shrub and seated herself at a distance of about a “bowshot away.”  (Gen. 21:16) God heard the cry of the boy’s crying and had an angel call to Hagar from out of heaven with a question, “What is the matter Hagar?  Do not be afraid for God has heard the boy crying as he lies there.” 

Suddenly Hagar opened her eyes and saw a well of water which appeared right there in front of her.  The Bible says Hagar then went to fill the skin of water and gave some of the life-giving refreshment to her son.  I’m sure she did this with great haste to save her son’s life. 

God caused a great miracle to happen in the wilderness that day, but He is also on-call at any time day or night for us when we’re going through a wilderness experience of our own and need a miracle.  He sees and hears us when we’re crying out to Him for mercy.  He’ll be there to give us the drink we’re thirsting for and will come to the rescue in a hurry.  The drink He gives can even quench the burning thirst of the soul. 

Many times God will do the unheard of to help His children during our times of distress and will go out of His way to reveal who He really is.  Psalm 46:1 tells us:  “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” I believe with all my heart that God indeed hears us when we pray and when we cry out to Him. 

I have been so thankful for the lessons the Lord taught me through studying about Hagar and her experiences because there was a correlation in her story and mine.  I didn’t live in a wilderness like she did but I had a wilderness experience going on.  She had a great need and so did I.  God came to the rescue for her and He also did for me.  He will do the same for all who call on Him because like I said in the beginning, He is a very real God.  Isn’t it amazing that our Heavenly Father is so faithful to hear His little darlings crying out for help?     

Prayer:

Father, I pray for every reader of this message and especially those who may be going through a wilderness experience of their own.  We’re all so needy Father and I cry out to you on behalf of those who are in need of a true miracle in their lives.  I pray for peace because You are our peace.  I pray for joy because the joy of the Lord is our strength.  I pray for healing because You are our healing balm.  I pray for complete restoration because You are our Restorer.  You are our Deliverer and I know You will come to the rescue for all who call upon You.  Lord, where there is pain and suffering, I pray for healing.  Where there is fear I pray for complete calm.  Lord protect those who are afraid and wrap Your loving arms of safety around them as they continue to trust in You.  In Jesus’ Name.  Amen.