I don’t know about you, but sometimes when it comes to the reading of Scripture — I can be guilty of reading a text “flat.” What does that mean Pastor Jordan? I mean sometimes we gloss over certain people, situations, and opportunities as we read the Scriptures looking at the greater picture. This is certainly the case with the narrative of Hagar. The overshadowing of God’s promise to Abraham and the humanly impossible birth of Issac can push us to NOT consider the entire narrative. If you stop and think about it, Hagar was a vulnerable single mom.
You know the story…Hagar was an Egyptian servant girl, given to Abram and Sarai after their tumultuous journey in Egypt. Disappointed with the timing of God’s promised child, Sarai offered the human solution of having Abram have relations with Hagar (talk about a mess). Hagar ended up conceiving and Ishmael was born causing Abram to separate himself from the situation. As you walk through Genesis 16 you quickly see the frustrations of Sarai being taken out on Hagar as she is unable to conceive, continuing in her journey of infertility ("her mistress was despised in her eyes…Sarai dealt hardly with her.").
Hagar had a son, but no husband. Think about this for a moment. Hagar was in a foreign land with a strange culture that was not her own. Feelings of insecurity and insignificance must have plagued her mind. The words, “alone, broken, and abandoned” would be circulating through her mind while walking through the mess of the situation called “her life.” Add the abuse of Sarai to that and you have a recipe for depression, discouragement, and despondence.
Hager certainly was not valued. Those who had enslaved her viewed her as a reward for their conquest. Abram and Sarai saw her as the physical means to fulfill God’s plan of giving them a promised Child. Yet, amid this situation, God saw her. I think one of the most encouraging verses in this narrative is seen in Genesis 16:13. Hagar calls upon the name of the Lord and says: “Thou God seest me.” Hagar says: “God, in the midst of injustice and difficulty, you see me.” God saw her, knew her, and even understood her. Even during a sinful situation, God promises a hopeful future for her and her son Ishmael (Genesis 21). Somewhat like the Women at the Well in John 4, Hagar had hope from a God who loved and cared for her. Both the Samaritan Women of John 4 and Hagar of Genesis 16 found themselves in situations of sin, perhaps by their hand, or by the hands of others— yet experienced the love, truth, and redemption of a God who cares.
For all the single moms out there, God knows you, loves you, and cares for you. Whether injustice has been perpetrated against you, you have lost your husband, or you have made mistakes in the past, God’s grace is sufficient for your daily life. While you may not have planned for your life to look the way it does. God knows and cares. As Hagar said in her difficulty, may you be encouraged that “thou God seest me.”
Happy Mother’s Day to all moms everywhere. No matter your background or story, God sees you and cares for you.
Pastor Jordan