The Unprepared Freedom of Hagar

Do you feel like a servant to your family, your boss, your church, your friends or your God? But as soon as you are free you have no idea what to do with your time?

Biblical Ground Work – Genesis 16; 21:8-21

The Slave Girl, Hagar

Hagar, an Egyptian slave-girl (H8198), appears in the Text when her mistress, Sarah, wants to bring her into God’s promise for Abraham, Sarah’s husband. After Hagar marries Abraham and becomes pregnant, she despises Sarah, Abraham’s first wife, her ex-mistress but soon to become her mistress again.

An Angel of the Lord finds the fleeing Hagar by a spring of water. He sends her back to Sarah to yield herself “under her hand”. Before she leaves, He tells her Ishmael’s future (Genesis 16:11-12). She returns to Sarah, in obedience to the Lord, to give birth to Ishmael. Hagar’s time was devoted to her mistress and her son.

The Freed Woman, Hagar

Twelve years later, Sarah sees Ishmael mocking (H6711) Isaac and tells Abraham to drive her out from their household. God tells Abraham to comply with Sarah’s wishes because He will intends to take care of them. Abraham complies and sends them out the next morning. Hagar is now free to do what she wants with her time.

Hagar wanders in the wilderness of Beersheba until all of her food and water are gone. When she believes Ismael is going to die, she puts him under a bush. An angel speaks to her from Heaven to reassure her of God’s promise for Ishmael. He, then, shows her a well of water.

Hagar and Ishmael move to the wilderness of Paran and Hagar finds him a wife from the land of Egypt. And they both live happily ever after.

Our Biblical Life Lesson – Your Free Time is God’s Time

Hagar was a slave, then a wife, then a slave again and then a free woman. She never understood that freedom meant spending time on her own vision from God. She did not know how to spend her free time preparing for her future.

So many years had gone by, with one misunderstanding after another about the promise of God for her son. When the time finally arrived, Hagar was ill equipped to handle it. She had served others at her visions expense.

She was exactly where the Lord told her to be in this time. Although she had not become the woman the Lord needed her to be. She knew how to work for others but not for herself. She worked for the vision of others but not for hers. Any free moment she had she did not spend on knowing the Lord or herself better.

No matter where you are in reality, the Lord is expecting you to use your time wisely. Your vision is closer than you think. You can prepare for it even if you are not completely clear what your vision will look like.

Are you getting the help you need to prepare to fulfill your vision? What do you require to do the work Jesus is sending you to do?

The ladies in The Bible Gals are becoming empowered to grow into their purpose with vision. Join us today in this engaging Facebook community here.

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