Genesis 21:8-21

Relax, Read and Reflect
Prayer-Lord, Open my heart and open my mind and help me learn. Go-Fight-Win. Amen
Hagar and Ishmael Sent Away
8 The child grew and was weaned, and on the day Isaac was weaned Abraham held a great feast. 9 But Sarah saw that the son whom Hagar the Egyptian had borne to Abraham was mocking, 10 and she said to Abraham, "Get rid of that slave woman and her son, for that slave woman's son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac."
11 The matter distressed Abraham greatly because it concerned his son. 12 But God said to him, "Do not be so distressed about the boy and your maidservant. Listen to whatever Sarah tells you, because it is through Isaac that your offspring [a] will be reckoned. 13 I will make the son of the maidservant into a nation also, because he is your offspring."
14 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.
15 When the water in the skin was gone, she put the boy under one of the bushes. 16 Then she went off and sat down nearby, about a bowshot away, for she thought, "I cannot watch the boy die." And as she sat there nearby, she [b] began to sob.
17 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. 18 Lift the boy up and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation."
19 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.
20 God was with the boy as he grew up. He lived in the desert and became an archer. 21 While he was living in the Desert of Paran, his mother got a wife for him from Egypt
That must have been some serious mocking! Make fun of your half-brother and you are sent to the desert to die. One of the main reasons that God made covenant with Abraham was because he trusted in God. He must have had feelings for Ishmael, verse 11 says he was distressed. He talked to God, and God told him to listen to Sarah.
Talk about not hearing what you want. When would God tell a man to listen to his wife, especially in those times. Remember, it was only yesterday that Sarah was mocking God by laughing! Sarah did understand that God’s promise was in Isaac, and she also knew that things had to be handled immediately. One of Abrahams main problems was that he did not always act quickly. Sarah was not bothered by the same weakness.
God did not allow Hagar and Ishmael to die however. God had told Abraham that Ishmael would father a nation, and he did. That nation would be bitter enemies with Israel. Sometimes I wonder what God was thinking, what is his plan? Did he intentionally do this to cause trouble? We may not understand everything that God does, but we don’t have to. Like Abraham, all we need to understand is that God is great, and we need to obey. It may not be easy, but that was never part of the deal.
Prayer-Lord, Help me accept the things and desires you have of me. I may not always understand, but I do have faith. Go-Fight-Win. Amen.
Things to do -Reflect on this lesson