January 4, 2015
Genesis, Chapter 21, verse 16-18:
16 Then she went and sat down at a distance, about a bow shot away, thinking, 'I cannot bear to see the child die.' Sitting at a
distance, she began to sob.17 God heard the boy crying, and the angel of God
called to Hagar from heaven. 'What is wrong, Hagar?' he asked. 'Do not be
afraid, for God has heard the boy's cry in his plight.18 Go and pick the
boy up and hold him safe, for I shall make him into a great nation.'
Hagar was the
servant of Sarah. Hagar was also the
mother of Abraham’s firstborn illegitimate son Ishmael. The situation here was horrendous, due to
Sarah’s practical nature, she gave her slave to Abraham to raise as a son to
give his inheritance, too.
According to
Islamic sources it was Ishmael that Abraham tried to offer as a sacrifice to
God at the Dome of the rock in Jerusalem.
A war ensured between the mother of Ishmael and the mother of Isaac. Now that Sarah had her own son Hagar and her
son was a threat to Sarah and Sarah wanted her and her son dead.
Fear is the root
of the evil, Sarah and Hagar feared the loss of life and property for their son’s;
and this in-house squabble continues today in the with the descendants of
Abraham (The Jews and the Arabs). Here
we see God sends his angel to pronounce to Hagar, dying of thirst and having to
watch her son die of thirst, to not be afraid. Legend has it that the angel produced
life giving water for Hagar and Ishmael and the courage to continue.
Blood feuds are the worst and are usually caused by fear which leads to puffed up pride and envy. Pride and envy are a slow poison to avoid. Today would be a good day to reflect if we have given in to this type of poison.
Also, today is the 11th day of Christmas. The 11 pipers piping is a sign for the eleven faithful apostles. It is interesting to note that Judas’ sin was due to fear, greed, pride and envy. Today would be a good day to read about the remaining 11 pipers and their courage to create a kingdom of God and change the world.
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