Hagar & Hannah

Hagar was the young woman servant of Sarah, the honored and privileged wife of Abraham. He was beloved and chosen of God to be the father of a nation through which He would bless the whole sin-darkened world. Perhaps as a young and submissive servant, Hagar had been favored by Sarah. Whatever the reasons, Hagar had been chosen by Sarah. Since her own fertility had ended, who better to bear ‘in her stead’ the son God had promised her husband? Hagar, the biological mother of a son who Sarah would claim as her own – yes, this had to be the answer!

Genesis 16 tells us that Hagar despised Sarah after she conceived. We are not told exactly why. Was she jealous of Sarah as the superior wife or did she resent feeling used to accomplish Sarah’s agenda in spite of her own wishes? Regardless of Hagar’s motives, it was Sarah who had the listening ear of Abraham when she placed the blame of being despised by her maid (now her ‘sister-wife’) on him. He in turn gave his beloved Sarah permission to deal with the circumstance as she saw fit.

 Sarah’s harsh treatment toward Hagar (putting her in her place) drove the pregnant woman to seek escape in the wilderness, where the angel of the Lord found her. He told her to return to her mistress and to submit to her authority. Abraham’s tribal camp would be a place of safety and provision for her and the child. He also told her that she was to have a son and descendants “too many to count” – Hagar also would have a place of honor in due time. She was told to name the child Ishmael to remind her of the angel’s words, “the Lord has given heed to your affliction” (v. 11).

Fourteen years later Hagar found herself again in the wilderness, having been driven from the camp via the long brewing jealously and resentment between her mistress and herself. In faith and with a broken heart Abraham had sent Hagar and Ishmael away from his tribe and family at God’s command, with His assurance that Ishmael too would become a great nation - but it must be through Isaac, “the son of promise,” through whom God would fulfill his promises to Abraham. After their packed provisions were gone, faint from hunger and thirst, Hagar placed her son in the shade of a bush and walked a distance away, weeping and pleading that she would not have to see her child die.  Again the angel of the Lord, the one Hagar had called “a God who sees,” spoke to her there and led her to the provisions and deliverance she and her son needed (see 16:13). “And God was with the lad…”  (Genesis 21:20) [Also, Genesis 16 & 21].

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Hanna had long had a rival wife who seemingly had the most fertile womb in all Israel, while she had been given a closed womb. Not only did her arms ache from emptiness, but ‘the other wife’ constantly and consciously made her feel ‘the lesser’ and ashamed of her bareness with the birth of each new son or daughter. With all her effort to love her husband’s children as her own, nothing could satisfy her deep longing to feel the miracle of human life inside her and to nurture her own little one to her heart’s delight. With all her husband’s assurances that he loved her more than he could love the ten sons she might have given him, she could not find the comfort for which she longed.

One year during the yearly trip to Shiloh to sacrifice to the Lord, her heart and spirit were finally completely broken. She could no longer hide the emotional wheel spinning wildly inside her. Jealousy, anger, hurt, envy and a deep questioning of God’s providence. She could not eat because of her heavy sadness and uncontrolled outbursts of weeping. Even there, on this special occasion of rejoicing, her husband deliberately gave her a double portion of the celebration meal to display his honor and affection toward her, but to no easement of her suffering.

In her desperation she made her way to the temple to pour her heart out as water to the God who had, in His sovereignty, withheld conception of the child she had so often asked of Him. She pleaded as never before in her bitterness of soul, making no audible sound but only moving her lips in the words she spoke in prayer. She knew that her God could change her circumstances to those of great joy, if only He willed to grant her petition. She promised God that if He would give her the honor and joy of mothering her own son, she would gladly give him back to God as a special servant to Him. If He would use her so! After words of encouragement from the prophet Eli, she left the temple with an un-weighted heart and a face that shone with hope.

Not long after their visit to Shiloh, Hannah conceived the son she had prayed for so often and then, finally, with all her being. At his birth she named him Samuel, saying, “Because I have asked him of the Lord.” With her husband’s permission she would not return to Shiloh for the family’s yearly sacrifice and celebration until the child was weaned – weaned from nursing and from the special love and care a small child would need. She knew that when she did return to Shiloh she must offer the child himself to serve in the temple. Her heart knew that this child was called of God for a special purpose to Himself. The thought of leaving him at the temple sometimes gave her a pang of sadness, but it was always swallowed by the joy and privilege of being used of God to nurture and prepare him for his calling. But the over-shadowing joy, as she fed, cuddled, disciplined and played with her son, was that of teaching him of the God who had heard and answered her prayers in creating her little Samuel.

In the years to come she would visit her son at the temple annually and give him the new robe she had lovingly hand stitched. Her joy was then unfailingly renewed in seeing her son grow in the knowledge and ways of his God. She would greatly rejoice in future days with the birth of each of the five children her God was to give her as comfort and reward for the one she had literally given to Him.  (I Samuel 1 & 2)     

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While Hagar did not seek her son, Ishmael, from God (and possibly felt victimized by her pregnancy) she came to love him as much as Sarah would love her Isaac. She fled to the wilderness and it was there that the Lord spoke to her.

Hannah very much desired a child of her own and pleadingly petitioned God for her heart’s desire. In her desperate and opportune hour she fled to the Temple. It was there that God heard her pleading and answered with abundant grace. 

Whether we come to our brokenness in the wilderness or while in a church pew makes no difference. His all-knowing presence and willingness to hear what our hearts speak to Him is the same. We speak to him through prayer, but He also speaks to us – and we best hear Him when we are willing to separate ourselves from all distractions, read the Scriptures, and listen with our hearts (Hebrews 1:1 & II Timothy 3:16-17).  ~   DLA

“Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”  –  Hebrews 4:16

December 2010: Mary's Joy and Pain

Mary sat holding her newly born baby near to her breast and heart. To be with child and to give birth for the first time is a wondrous thing for any woman – but this child was indeed a miracle. The angel had called him the Son of the Most High and told her that he would reign over the throne of David forever. ‘How can this be?’ she was still asking herself – that she, a virgin had just given birth to her firstborn – even God in human flesh.  She looked at him in awe – Miracle of miracles – yet he looked and felt like any newborn child. There was nothing about his appearance that marked him as different. She prayed for wisdom and guidance for the nurturing of this future king. She would leave the future to God and love this blessed bundle of life with all her strength and ability (Luke 1:26-35 & 67-79).

After the days of purification, Mary and Joseph took the baby to Jerusalem to present him to God as their law required and to offer the appropriate sacrifice – a pair of turtle doves. Such a small offering for such a priceless treasure to their hearts and lives! While there, they were approached by an elderly man named Simeon, who begged to take the child into his arms. Overcome with joy he looked up to the heavens and declared that he could now leave this life in peace, having seen God’s promised salvation, so long awaited. Borrowing the words of the prophet, he then announced that the child would be a light to the Gentiles and the glory of Israel. Mary and Joseph were amazed in silence. Simeon announced blessing upon them and went on to say that their Child would be the rise and fall of many and a sign to be opposed.  Opposition to her child – how – from whom? Her present joy was suddenly mixed with dread.  Simeon also said that a sword would pierce even her very soul in days to come. She wanted only to take her child into her arms and cherish the comfort of holding him near. What she did not understand must be committed trustingly to the loving God she knew. (Luke 2:21-35).

Thirty-three years later Mary stood distantly from the cross of crucifixion where she had been watching her son slowly die for hours. He was not recognizable from the torture he had been through, the blood loss and dehydration. The Roman soldiers had mounted a sign on the cross that read “Jesus the Nazarene-The King of the Jews” – was this his coronation? Her thoughts were muddled, despairing, emotionally overwhelming and mostly of disbelief – full of the unspeakable pain of a mother watching her son – the promised king – die. When He spoke of thirst someone responded with a wine-soaked sponge reached up to his mouth. Her heart, now completely broken, seemed to be turning to fluid and pouring into every part of her body…and finally He died. He was dead and no longer in the unimaginable agony he had endured for hours. Could she now breathe without gasping?

Then a soldier pierced his side with a spear to ensure his death. It might as well have gone into her very own heart. She remembered again old Simeon and his prophecy. She was losing consciousness as John, to whom Jesus had committed her care, pulled her from this dark and terrible place. For now there was no understanding of how or why they had killed God’s Son – the perfect son – as a lamb without blemish. Only God could explain why He allowed His own Son to suffer so. Surely He would.  (John 19:17-35, 20-21 & I Peter 1:18-19)

While we remember the precious beauty and innocence of the baby Jesus, it is more important to remember the paradoxical beauty of the Lamb that was slain. Read Acts 1-4 for the “why.”  ~  DLA

…”Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing!”

(Revelation 5:12)

November 2010: Thanksgivings

This is the month when most American families will gather around a table of bounty on Thanksgiving Day. Some will bow their heads to give thanks, some will take their turn in speaking of something for which they are thankful, and some will chow down into the feast of plenty with no thought of gratitude.

As a Christian I have frequently conflicting thoughts and emotions about the holidays. Who doesn’t enjoy festive foods, decorations and special times of family interaction?  We need special times and special celebrations in life as individuals and as families. We need them as a society as elements of common cohesiveness. As Christians, our concern should be in regarding the how and why of what we celebrate. But of all our major calendar holidays, Thanksgiving (to me) is the least controversial, and for various reasons, has the potential for being the best.

We are about six generations forward from the Great Depression and a previous culture in which bounty was not so common. No wonder then that we are now so prone to whine and complain in the midst of relative luxury. “The eye is never satisfied…” (Ecclesiastes 1:8)  As a whole, most of us don’t know how to be truly thankful on any day of the year. We can’t fully appreciate anything or anyone until we are without them. Even when we try to be more aware of even some of the most common yet wonderful things we should be thankful for (example: the vision to see God’s creativity displayed in His complex yet gloriously ordered prism-like hues of autumn leaves and light) we soon allow some negative thought to swallow our effort. 

The Scriptures don’t tell us to set aside a day to celebrate the birth of Christ, nor even His resurrection from death. We should celebrate these ‘unspeakable gift(s) [II Corinthians 9:15] every day through our thoughts, words and deeds.  The celebration of Christmas and Easter are Christian liberties (to be celebrated [or not] as would be pleasing and acceptable to God and in accordance with one’s Biblically grounded convictions). But the Scriptures are full of commandments and admonitions to be thankful and full of praise to the One who is the source of every good thing. A good place to begin:  Consider the ground which nurtures the lilies as well as much of our food. Then let our thoughts of thankfulness slowly rise to the stars as a reminder that every day should be a thanksgiving day. (Luke 6:35)  ~  DLA

A few relative Scripture references:  Psalm 26:6-7, 50:14, 95:2, 100:4, 147: 7-11, II Corinthians 9: 14-15, Philippians 4:6, Colossians 4:2, & Revelation 7: 12   

October 2010: Accepting the Inevitable

They come and they go as the clouds pass over on a windy day. The days of our short lives are ticking away as the grandfather clock in my living room – a constant reminder that our days on this earth are truly as a vapor, rising and disappearing.

Only yesterday I was young, twenty-something. Someone warned me that I had no clue of how quickly my youth would be a thing of the past. I considered it to be mostly the voice of disappointment from someone who had many regrets. I would choose wisely how to spend my days without a lot of regret. After all, God had blessed me to know Him in my heart at a young age, and had drawn me to the Scriptures for how to live my time on earth. I would relish the days given me and squeeze every drop of nectar from each one. But even then the nectar was sometimes tainted by the bitter taste of words from my own mouth and other pesky sin problems, as when the little foxes ruin the vineyard.

A positive perspective became more difficult to maintain as various troubles came. Try as I might to avoid all the bumps and pits in the road, my feet grew weary and sometimes bogged with gooey clay. God would graciously lift my feet from the bog and set me on a straight path once again. But alas, clay feet seem to naturally meander into the sticky places, and we inevitably have to make the time to have them scraped and cleaned. (Lord Jesus, not my feet only but all of my being). Those wiser choices in life are not always as easy to recognize as we sometimes assume.

One day when I awoke I was not young anymore. My previous life seemed to have passed like a night’s dream. The mirror showed me that the sparkle of youth had gone and that those telling fine lines had come in spite of all the SPF I had slathered on. More sobering, I had become one of those ‘older’ people who are always so full of advice.

With the realization that life is indeed fleeting, slowly there came a settled acceptance that my stay here is very temporary. My presence here is altogether transient and my contemplation of the end of it is not nearly as dreadful as it once was. The ‘laying aside of my earthly dwelling’ might be imminent or a relatively few years down the road, but my comfort lies in knowing that the true Christian has a hope that shines ever brighter – to leave the stress of a sin-cursed world, to be in Christ’s presence and freed from this body which is so prone to sin, sickness and weariness. The best we can hope for is not to die in our sleep, but to die in Him. “For me to live is Christ…to die is gain…to be with Christ… which is far better.” THIS IS HOPE.  ~ (Psa. 90, James 1:9-12, Phil. 1:20-23, II Cor. 5:1-8)    DLA