Tagged: Women of the Bible
HELLO REBEKAH PART I
Rebekah was sought out. A long journey was taken with the sole purpose of finding her.
In the same way, the man God has for your life will seek you out!
Personalize it and say it out loud.
The man God has for [MY] life will seek [ME] out!
Reread that!
Let it seep into your spirit. As a single woman of faith I know the struggle. The very real struggle. Every word of encouragement is a drop of water in the desert.
GOD HAS A GODLY MAN FOR YOU.
LET HIM SEEK YOU OUT!
7 he will send his angel before you so that you can get a wife for my son from there.
I am believing with you single sister, that when God sends him He will send an angel before him to prepare the way. You are God’s daughter! You are his craftsmanship! He wants you to be paired with only someone who will value you and protect you as the masterpiece you were created you to be are!
11 He had the camels kneel down near the well outside the town; it was toward evening, the time the women go out to draw water.
The importance of being in the right place at the right time. Keep your commitments. This strikes so close to home. Just this week I was tempted to break a weekly commitment to attend an art exhibit. Mind you I really wanted to go to this exhibit’s opening reception and potentially meet an artist I’ve recently started following. Of course, the way things usually go… the event fell on the same night as my weekly small group. It could have been really easy to miss just one week. I would’ve be missing it for a fun and wholesome reason. I had to consider whether it was really worth me breaking my commitment. Couldn’t I just go to the exhibit on another night? Or maybe go after? I ended up keeping my commitment and going to the art exhibit afterwards. Everything worked out perfectly! I got my weekly dose of the word and encouragement that we all need AND I was able to go to the exhibit and meet my new favorite artist. Had I skipped out on my group I probably would have felt a little guilty and I know I wouldn’t have had the chance of making friends with some of the new members. Let’s be responsible with our commitments and God will reward us for our obedience.
Rebekah had no idea that Abraham’s servant was on his way to look for her. She was just going about her business. Doing the mundane tasks of fetching water from the well. But, let me not get ahead of myself.
12 Then he prayed,
God’s man for you will be a prayerful man! If he isn’t praying then guess what… HE ISN’T FOR YOU!!!
We don’t always want to accept it but it’s a safe guard…. don’t expose your spirit to be intertwined with a spirit that is not in communion with the LORD. I promise from personal experience it will only cause pain!
Sisters, let’s trust that God’s plan is bigger and better than what we can think up or imagine for ourselves. One way to show we are relying and trusting in the LORD is by staying away from men who are not up to His standards.
If you read the whole passage you’ll see that he didn’t just pray but he prayed a specific prayer. He asked God to make it obvious. I encourage you to do the same. Pray for specific signs and answers. Be open to receive God’s answers even if they aren’t what you may be hoping for.
15 Before he had finished praying, Rebekah came out with her jar on her shoulder…
There she is! An answer to a prayer…. reminds me of Eve being an answer to Adam’s prayer.
17 The servant hurried to meet her and said…
I was once told that the right man will come to you with a plan.
If a guy is fluttering around your life but is indecisive and has no plan or interest in a plan RUN!!!! It’s so much easier said than done. But it is possible to run. I did! You can too!!!!
If you know what you want don’t hang around waiting for an “okay” guy to be all in. I had to make that decision recently. It was hard and it was painful. But it’s better to hurt for a little while and run away from the wrong guy than to attach yourself to the wrong guy and hurt for a lifetime.
Let’s learn from each other and take a preventative approach. Let’s prevent drama and pain by latching onto God’s promises in His word.
Memory Verse: Habakkuk 2:3
Habakkuk 2:3 For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay.
My Prayer for You:
Heavenly Father, I pray for every woman reading this post today. I ask you to cover them with a special protection. I pray that you may guide them to be where you want them to be at the exact time you need them to be there. I ask that you may put a sleeping beauty blessing over their passion that it may not be awakened before its time. I ask you Heavenly Father to please be with each and every single reader as they make important relationship decisions in their lives. Please help them RUN from sexual sin. Help them say NO to those who they know in the depths of their hearts are not healthy for them. Thank you for hearing our prayers and thank you for being with us while we navigate the journey you’ve designed for us. Grow our faith and trust in you that we may not lean on our own understanding. And please help us seek you with all of our hearts. In Jesus’ name, Amen!
Please comment below and let me know if this post was inspiring, encouraging or helpful to you in any way! I would love to know how God is moving in your life through Superstarnat.com.
HELLO MILKAH AND REUMAH
Genesis 22:20-24 zooms in on Nahor’s family for a total of 4 verses. In these short verses we are reminded that he is Abraham’s brother.
Remember Abraham? Used to be Abram. He’s married to Sarah who used to be Sarai. Revisit Hello Sarai/Sarah here… I, II, III.
What I learned from Reumah:
1. I can’t allow labels to define me.
Just because society or the world defines you as one thing does not mean that you are confined to that description. You are not being held hostage to that connotation. You are free to live the life you choose regardless of what label has been placed on you!
You are more than any label because your most important label is DAUGHTER OF THE KING! 2. My life does matter.
It’s easy to think that your life is not important because we fall into a certain category… I’m just a (fill in the blank), I’m not making any real difference. That sentence right there. That’s a lie from the devil! YES YOU ARE MAKING A DIFFERENCE! There is someone who is looking to you for encouragement or motivation. Someone who is maybe looking to you for approval or acceptance. Your life matters very much! You have been created with a specific purpose to fulfill that only you can do! Just because it seems like you’re the secondary character in your movie called Life does not mean that you are!
You are a protagonist! Live it!
Memory Verse Psalm 57:2
Psalm 57:2 I cry out to God Most High, to God who fulfills his purpose for me.
My Prayer for you:
Lord God, today I pray for the reader who identifies themselves with either Milkah or Reumah. I pray for the reader who is struggling to understand their identity. Father help them know that they have a real identity in you! That in you they are more than anything this world can ever say they are. I pray that the words from this blog post may breathe life into a dying spirit today. Lord, help us live for you in such a way that we leave the next generation better than we could ever be. Thank you for covering us with your protecting hand. Thank you for loving us beyond measure. Thank you that your love covers over a multitude of sin. Thank you that we are your children and in turn we are royalty! I praise your name and lift your name above all else. In Jesus’ name, AMEN!
Milkah is first mentioned in Genesis 11:29. In one verse we are told that she is the daughter of Haran and the wife of Nahor.
As the daughter of Haran she is also the sister of Lot (verse 27).
Family ties and connections in the bible fascinate me. As Lot’s sister, Milkah is sister-in-law to Lot’s Wife and aunt to Lot’s Daughters. As Haran’s daughter, Milkah is Abraham’s niece. As Nahor’s wife she is also Sarah’s sister in law. Talk about keeping it all in the family.
We see her again in Genesis 22:20 where we learn she has mothered eight sons to Nahor. The 8th and youngest son is Bethuel. In verse 23 we are informed that Bethuel becomes Rebeka’s father.
Now I’m sure that all the brothers are mentioned for lineage purposes and to explain family ties and how the family grew and spread over time. But for my blog’s purpose I’m going to zoom in on the fact that Rebeka is mentioned. I can’t wait to talk about her.
Honestly, I feel like the whole reason these four verses are recorded is simply to make the statement that Milkah is Rebeka’s grandmother!
This passage gives me the preview that Sarah’s and Milkah’s families will be further intertwined at some point in the future. We will get to check it out in Genesis 24/Hello Rebeka.
What I learned from Milkah:
- My family does not predict my legacy.
Her legacy, your legacy, my legacy is not a reflection of our family ties!
Reumah
Genesis 22:24 His concubine, whose name was Reumah…
Just a concubine? Or more? According to Bible Hub Reumah is the first woman in the bible to be recorded as a concubine. I found it so odd that the second wife of a secondary character would be named when her status was “CONCUBINE”. Bible Hub also states that her name means “exalted”. What?? This confused me even further. A concubine with a name that means “exalted” 1. The meaning of her name made me want to dig deeper. In all my searching I kept hitting a dead end. All I found was that she was a concubine, which we already know.
But then, I thought of something.
What’s the definition of the word concubine?
HELLO LOT’S DAUGHTERS
If you didn’t get a chance to read last week’s post click here.
She couldn’t contain herself and looked back at the last minute. Her lack of self-control left her daughter’s without a mother.
This week I want to take a closer look at Lot’s daughters.
Lot’s daughters were engaged with men from Sodom and Gomorrah when the angels of the Lord showed up to deliver their family. They were probably excited about getting married. Every engaged girl I’ve ever known has been ecstatic and over joyed at the prospects of marriage. I wonder if they were devastated when their fiancés refused to leave the city with them. They refused to let go of the wickedness of S&G to create a new life with them.
I know my heart would have shattered.
Not only did these two sisters lose their future husbands in their escape they also lost their mother. Who’s to know how close they were. The passage doesn’t mention any grieving or morning for the loss of their mother. Regardless of their mother-daughter relationships losing everything in a matter of minutes must have been traumatizing to say the least. And to top it all off their father driven by fear rushes them into the mountains to live secluded in a cave! Who does that?!
They may have been able to start over and meet new potential suitors. However that is not what happens. Maybe it was their upbringing in Sodom and Gomorrah. Maybe it was cave fever. Maybe they lost hope all together. I can’t begin to imagine what type of desperation possessed the older sister to suggest what we know today as a vile and inappropriate act.
31 One day the older daughter said to the younger, “Our father is old, and there is no man around here to give us children—as is the custom all over the earth. 32 Let’s get our father to drink wine and then sleep with him and preserve our family line through our father.”
We learned in Hello Cain’s Wife that God had yet to outlawed incest in the times of the book of Genesis. It doesn’t become a sin until Leviticus. So, in some regard her idea isn’t all that crazy or far-fetched, if viewed from the perspective of that time period and their customs. If someone suggested that today… I’d be very very concerned for them. In any case the younger sister agreed.
Side bar: [They must have been lonely. I know what loneliness feels like and it’s one of those heartaches that you feel physically. To me it hurts so much that I just want to tear my heart out to make the ache stop. It’s one of those cases in which the tears sting so bad when you cry and you don’t know what to do so you just wallow in it until it passes.]
I’m learning that Jesus is always at our side. We never need to feel lonely because Christ is always with us. Besides no one will be able to be with us every second of the day. We will be alone at times; in moments of loneliness lets’ cry out to the author of time and space. Let’s allow God to fill the relational void.
If only Lot’s Daughters had the good sense to call out to God for a solution instead of attempting to fix their problems on their own. I read a blog post about Lot’s family that mentioned an interesting point, the girls probably knew that they were doing something inappropriate because why get their father drunk? Why not just talk to him and tell him what was going on? Maybe he might have understood and mustered the courage to leave the cave and rejoin civilization.
We learn in verses 34 through 38 that in two consecutive nights the sisters get Lot drunk and sleep with him in order to become pregnant. They both conceived and gave birth to sons.
Happy ending? I wouldn’t say so. Their sons’ descendants grow up to be enemies of God’s chosen people.
Not such a great fate for Lot’s family after all.
Read the full story here.
What I Learned from Lot’s Daughters:
- We are all capable of doing wild things when faced with desperate situations.
- Sometimes it’s easier to take matters into our own hands.
- The journey is just as important as the destination.
- Always measure the consequences.
What did you learn from Lot’s Daughters? Anything stand out to you? Share in the comments below!
My Prayer for You:
Dear Jesus, please help us remember that you are near even when we cannot feel or hear you. Lord, help us present all requests to you instead of seeking out quick fixes that will only hurt us further in the long run. I pray that you may use today’s post to minister to someone’s heart. That the words read on this screen may be of encouragement and Godly conviction. I ask you with a humble heart to lead us into your will and not our own. Please help us put aside the plans that satisfy our flesh but grieve your spirit. Thank you for loving us without reservation. Thank you for hearing our prayers. In Jesus’ name, Amen!
Memory Verse: Isaiah 41:10
Isaiah 41: 10 So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
HELLO LOT’S WIFE
With three simple words Jesus preached a whole sermon.
Luke 17:32 “Remember Lot’s wife.”
In Genesis 19 we find the story of Lot and his family. They lived along side Abraham and Sarah for sometime. But once they went their separate ways Lot led his family to the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. It turned out to be a salty situation. The city was destined for destruction and Lot and his family would be destroyed along with everyone else inside the city unless they fled. Verses 15 – 17 and 26 give great insight to the story.
26 But Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.
There you have it. Lot’s wife looked back. She was given one instruction. Don’t look back. She couldn’t follow through with it.
Maybe she was just curious.
Maybe she had gotten so used to her S&G home that she hated the thought of losing it.
Whatever the reason, Lot’s wife looked back. As a result she was instantly turned into a pillar of salt.
This story makes me think of how looking to my past can hinder me from reaching better things in my future.
I understand that it’s important to know where we come from to know where we are going. I also think that it’s important to have a good grasp of our past in order to not repeat the same mistakes in our future.
But let’s face it. How common is it to get so stuck in the past that you can’t enjoy your present? Or to be so paralyzed by the past that the future seems unattainable?
Lot’s wife teaches us a grave lesson.
#1 Be obedient.
#2 Let go of the past and move into your future.
Clinging to the straws of long ago will only stop you from moving forward. I know it’s prevented me from seeing life with clear eyes. I know it’s kept me attached to people who were harmful for me for longer than necessary.
Looking back to the familiar may be the easy way out, the comfortable way. But who ever said you can achieve great things by being comfortable?
Salt may help preserve our food and season things up but in Lot’s wife’s case salt proved to be her doom. I want her saltiness to be a lesson learned. This lesson was obviously important enough for Jesus to bring it up himself.
Read the whole passage here.
My Prayer for You:
Lord God, I pray for the people who keep looking back. I pray for those who are unable to see what is right before them because they refuse to let go of their past. I ask you to take the scales off their eyes. I pray that you may give them the strength to let go. That they may see a better future before them. I ask you Jesus to please protect us from our own sinful natures. Help us fix our eyes on you that we may not fall into destruction because of wandering eyes. Thank you for hearing and acting upon our prayers. Thank you for covering us, leading us and guiding us even when we feel alone. I pray that your will may be done. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Memory Verse: Proverbs 4:25-27
Proverbs 4:25 Let your eyes look straight ahead; fix your gaze directly before you. 26 Give careful thought to the paths for your feet and be steadfast in all your ways. 27 Do not turn to the right or the left; keep your foot from evil.
HELLO HAGAR PART III
If you are here for the first time, WELCOME!!! You have no idea how ecstatic I am that you’re here!!!
If it’s not your first time, I’m not lying when I say I am equally as excited that you decided to come back!!!!
Either way THANK YOU for stopping by and hanging out here at SUPERSTARNAT.COM
Hello Hagar Part I… click here.
Hello Hagar Part II… click here.
Have you read my Hello Eve or Hello Sarai/Sarah series??? Check ’em out and let me know what you think!
The last two weeks we learned about Hagar’s misfortune. She was a slave who was forced to have a child for her masters. Once she became pregnant an intense hatred between herself and her mistress erupted into mistreatment and Hagar’s running away. Last week we saw how God was with her through it all. He protected her in the desert and sent her back to her mistress. Today we see what happens almost 20 years later. Have they learned to live in harmony? Have they accepted their roles and flourished within them? Or has the underlying tension kept everyone walking on eggshells?
Genesis 21 drops a bit of a bombshell on the story. It let’s loose a rather unexpected turn of events. At this point Sarah, Hagar’s mistress, has had the child she has waited forever for. She decides that she no longer wants Hagar around, sending her and her son away for good has become her desire. Abraham wisely consults with the Lord and in verse 12 God responds. His answer may be surprising, let’s read it…
12 But God said to him, “Do not be so distressed about the boy and your slave woman. Listen to whatever Sarah tells you…”
So God tells Abraham to go ahead and please his wife in this, to send
Hagar away with her son. Basically Hagar got kicked out!!!13 I will make the son of the slave into a nation also, because he is your offspring.”
God blesses the idea of sending Hagar away but not without first speaking a blessing over her son.
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.I bet Hagar had no idea she was going to be exiled from the only home she’d known for more than 30 years when she woke up that morning. Maybe she was overcome with uncertainty and fear at the thought of having to leave and not knowing where to go. Back into the desert she went. This time she did not go alone. Her son accompanied her in the wanderings. Having a limited amount of supplies soon became an issue especially because they wandered without a final destination.
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 about a bowshot away, for she thought, “I cannot watch the boy die.” And as she sat there, she began to sob.
Lack of water took it’s toll and her son began to dehydrate. One piece if information that strikes me about this story every time is the boys age. When read without background knowledge it comes off like he is just a young child. The reality is that the boy was a teenager. She walked away from her teenaged son and left him to die.
Wow! What a moment of hopelessness. How incredibly crippling it must feel to be in a position where the one person you love the most in the world is slipping away and there is absolutely nothing you can do about it.
But then God… maybe there is nothing you or I can do in some situations but there is always one who can make the impossible possible.
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.
I love how it says that He “opened her eyes” as if implying the wells presence the whole time. I wonder what is directly in front of you that you have been praying for but have not noticed? What is God opening your eyes to?
My Prayer for You:
Lord God I pray for for the unmet prayers. I pray for those in
Memory Verse: Matthew 19:26
HELLO HAGAR PART II
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Today we will take a look at what led to Hagar fleeing the scene and what happened once she did. If you haven’t read Hello Hagar Part I click here to catch up. |
Sarai couldn’t have children so she told her husband to create a family through her slave, Hagar.
Hagar became pregnant and began to despise her mistress.
Let’s see what happens next and what we can learn from it.
Genesis 16
4 He slept with Hagar, and she conceived. When she knew she was pregnant, she began to despise her mistress. 6 … Then Sarai mistreated Hagar; so she fled from her.
I’ve experienced many different levels of anger: so mad I’m shaking, so mad I have to walk away, so mad my ears become extremely hot and turn red, so mad my voice steadily increases. The worst of all is when I am so mad I can’t contain myself and the tears start flowing.
Why do I mention my levels of anger?
Because I think Hagar was going through her own levels of emotional distress during this season in her life.
At this point Hagar has been with Sarai for years and I would imagine that even as her slave they had as cordial and positive a relationship as was appropriate. However the minute Hagar felt something other than complete respect for her mistress things began to go south. Hagar mustn’t have been the best at hiding her emotions because it’s obvious from verse 6 that Sarai felt her disdain and responded in tow.
Talk about baby momma drama!!!
I can’t begin to imagine how poorly Sarai must have treated Hagar for her to get to the point of, “I CAN’T TAKE THIS ANYMORE!”. She got to level 10 of fed up. Sick and tired of being sick and tired she packed a bag and hit the road.
Hagar ran away.
She ran away from the problem. She ran away from her reality. She ran away from a toxic and apparent hopeless situation.
Who was she to compete? She was still a slave and had no rights.
So she fled.
I know Hagar isn’t the only person who has ever felt so overwhelmed, hurt, disappointed, disillusioned, mistreated, hopeless or burdened and thought the best remedy would be to take the next exit off the highway to crazy. I’ve done this myself. I ran away from situations and circumstances instead of facing them head on. I am sure that maybe some of you have as well. Things didn’t go as planned in the fleeing process did they? I know they definitely didn’t for me and they didn’t for Hagar either.
I bet she thought she could just go back to Egypt with her son and start a new life. Little did she know that in running away from Sarai and the mess her life had become she was actually running right into a holy encounter with God.7 The angel of the Lord found Hagar near a spring in the desert;
I love verse 7. In such a low desperate moment God finds Hagar. She was Egyptian and probably didn’t even follow the same god that Sarai and Abram did, yet their God went and sought her out in the middle of the desert. The desert always makes me think of the driest most arid condition of the heart and soul. Hagar was physically and emotionally in a desert. God met her there. He didn’t just happen upon her, he went looking specifically for her.
Isn’t that beautiful?
So if you are in a desert today I hope these words may be a refreshing icy cold drink to your spirit. God can and will meet you where you are. 8 And he said, “Hagar, slave of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?” “I’m running away from my mistress Sarai,” she answered. 9 Then the angel of the Lord told her, “Go back to your mistress and submit to her.” God met Hagar in the desert to give her an instruction. An instruction to get out of the wilderness.
My God will not leave you in the desert longer than need be! God will provide you with a way out, a lesson learned. Which is exactly what he did for Hagar. He tells her to go back and submit. Basically he’s telling her to get her emotions under control and not allow them to interfere with her responsibilities. Sarai may have been wrong but that doesn’t mean it was okay for Hagar to be anything but honoring.
10 The angel added, “I will increase your descendants so much that they will be too numerous to count.” 11 The angel of the Lord also said to her: “You are now pregnant and you will give birth to a son. You shall name him Ishmael, for the Lord has heard of your misery.
After God gives Hagar an instruction he gives her a promise. That’s so encouraging. Just as much, or maybe more, as God wants our obedience he wants to bless us. I have a friend who would always say, “God wants to bless you more than you want to be blessed.”
Listen for the promises and get ready for your blessing!!!
13 She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me,” for she said, “I have now seen” the One who sees me.”
In closing, Hagar went through so much in a matter of 13 verses. She started off as a slave who was ordered to become pregnant and when it happens she despises her mistress. As a result her mistress treats her severely and she runs away. While fleeing she encounters God in the desert and he gives her an instruction and a promise.
Her response is FAITH! She declares her belief in God. She reminds us that God’s eyes are on us. He sees us. He hears our cries. He knows our pains and sees our misery.
My Prayer For You:
Heavenly Father, I am so blessed by Hagar’s story. Thank you for this image of protection. Thank you for revealing to us how you watch over us even when life seems to be the driest of deserts. Lord God I pray that you may use Hagar’s story to bless and impact someone’s heart today. That as we celebrate Easter this weekend we may remember the gravity of your sacrifice. Help us not to take you for granted but that we may live lives that reflect who you truly are. I pray all of these things in Jesus’ name, Amen.
Memory Verse:
Deuteronomy 31:8Deuteronomy 31:8 It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.”
HELLO HAGAR PART I
Last week we wrapped up Hello Sarai/Sarah.
Remember her servant?
No? Then go back and check out Hello Sarai/Sarah Part I, II, III, IV.
The servant/slave girl that is sprinkled throughout Sarah’s story, her name is Hagar. Today I want to take a closer look at Hagar and all that she experienced as a result of being Sarah’s slave.
The first thing we learn about Hagar is that she is a servant.
No, worse. She is a SLAVE.
When I think about what the word slave means I think phrases such as: confined, ordered around, can’t make own choices, controlled.
We can all agree that slavery no matter the circumstances is not a good way to live. So off the bat we see that Hagar already has a difficult life. In verse two Hagar gets a curb ball thrown at her that is about to make things even more challenging.
[Quick side bar… What are you a slave to? What controls your decisions? What confines you? What dictates your thoughts and emotions?
Good news is that Jesus came to set you and me free. We DO NOT need to be slaves to our sins any longer. We can be coheirs with Christ.]
Genesis 16:2… Abram agreed to what Sarai said. 3 … Sarai his wife took her Egyptian slave Hagar and gave her to her husband to be his wife. 4 He slept with Hagar, and she conceived.
Now I understand that Hagar is a slave but it kills me that Sarai thought of her as an object that she could “take” and “give” to her husband. Hagar had no say in the matter. I wonder. Was she raped? Did Abram force himself upon her? Well. It’s not like she had the option to say no.
Genesis 16: 4 … When she knew she was pregnant, she began to despise her mistress.
Verse 4 is our window into Hagar’s emotions. She “DESPISED” Sarai. That’s such a strong word.Who do you despise? I know who I have despised…. that person who I felt had ruined it for me… that person I don’t want to see even in a painting. It’s an emotion like many others, yet the bible has something pretty convicting to say about hatred.
1 John 3:15 Anyone who hates another brother or sister is really a murderer at heart.
Ouch! Sometimes people’s actions towards you or me are painful and unmerited. We may even think that despising or loathing them is what they deserve. However let’s be careful that we don’t allow others actions towards us to cause us to think, say or do something we can end up regretting.
I can’t say I’m surprised by her reaction. Hagar did not request to become Abram’s baby momma. This was forced upon her.
Sucks, because sometimes that’s how life is.
Sometimes something gets forced upon you or me that we did not look for, we did not ask for, we do not want.
My question is this… How do you respond?
Heck, how do I respond?
In those dark moments when we have no control and someone else is making the decisions that ultimately affect you or me directly.
Those moments when we want to shout NO! STOP! and our screams go unheard. The pain seems overwhelming and unbearable. I’ve been there. You are not alone.
Let’s remember:
1. It’s NOT your fault.
2. Don’t beat yourself up over someone elses actions.
3. You are not defined by the incident.
4. Forgive the people involved, yourself included.
5. Surrender the situation to God and make good choices as you move forward.
Next time we will see what course of action Hagar takes.
My Prayer for you:
Heavenly Father, thank you for showing us that there were women in the bible who felt real emotions. Thank you because that reminds us that we are not alone in our pain. We are not alone in our suffering. I pray for every reader experiencing pain at this moment. Any heart ache any disappointment or disillusionment. I ask you to surround their hearts with your love and with your joy. Your word declares that you are with the brokenhearted and crushed in spirit and I believe you are with each broken heart right now. I ask you to heal all broken hearts and help us forgive those who have caused us to feel any negative emotions such as hatred or jealousy. Thank you for hearing and responding to this request in Jesus’ heavenly name, Amen.
Memory Verse: Psalm 34:18
HELLO SARAI/SARAH IV
HELLO SARAI PART I
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HELLO SARAI PART II
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HELLO SARAI/SARAH PART III
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I love Sarah’s story.
It paints such a picture of God’s love and Christ’ redemption.
How I long to see God move in my life the way He did in Sarah’s.
How I desire a new name… a renewed promise.
Sarah’s story gives us a glimpse into God’s mercy and grace.
Playing catch up?
Read the first 3 installments and then you’ll be all up to date.
Genesis 21: 1
Now the Lord was gracious to Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah what he had promised. 2 Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised him. #1 God is FAITHFUL!No matter what you are praying for.
No matter how unlikely the promise may seem.
No matter how long you’ve been waiting.
GOD IS FAITHFUL.
God came through for Sarah.
HE WILL COME THROUGH FOR YOU!
Believe it!
Receive it into your spirit!
Don’t allow the lies of this world, your fears, your insecurities to get in the way of trusting and ultimately seeing your dreams and God’s promises for your life come to pass!
In Hello Eve Part I, II, III we learned that we were created with a divine purpose. Nothing can prevent God from showing up and showing off in your life!
Look at Sarah.
Everything was against her.
Her choices, her faith, her age.
Did any of these things stop God from fulfilling His promise?
NO!
Did it happen the way Sarah would have liked? Or when Sarah would have wanted it?
NO!
But did it happen?
YES!
Dear sister friend, let’s, you and me start believing again! Let’s grab hold of God’s promise once more. Let’s not lose hope. Let’s not forget what He has already done.
Let’s live above reproach.
Genesis 21: 6 Sarah said, “God has brought me laughter, and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me.”
7 And she added, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.” #2 CELEBRATE!When was the last time you took time to celebrate God’s grace? When was the last time you shared your testimony so others can join in on your celebration.
I love verse 6.
Sarah went from laughing from incredulity (Genesis 18:12) to laughing from celebration!
This encourages me to praise.
It reinforces that God will see me through.
It reminds me that He has ALREADY brought me through struggles and hurts. God’s love is so big He doesn’t want me to go back to who, what, where I used to be. I must celebrate that!
I must celebrate the times and seasons when God demonstrated His grace and mercy. I need to create a habit of celebrating even if I haven’t seen the blessing yet.
I really believe that Joel Osteen quote, “If you complain you’ll remain; if you praise you’ll be raised.”
Let’s praise God for what He’s done in our past. Let’s praise God for moving in the unseen. Let’s celebrate the fact that even though we don’t know how or when God does and He’ll reveal it when we are ready to experience it!
I am so grateful for Sarah. I am thankful that her story mattered to God and we can read it today and gain insight and wisdom. We can learn how to improve ourselves to live to our maximum potential.
Memory Verse: Romans 8: 38-39Romans 8: 38 And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. 39 No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.
My prayer for you:
Heavenly Father, I pray for every reader today. I pray that you may use these words to encourage, motivate and inspire them. I ask that you may remind them of how you have blessed them in the past. I pray Lord Jesus, that you may remind them of the promises you have in store for them. Please lift their spirits. Please let lose your joy within them that they may praise you for past successes. That they may celebrate your faithfulness. Thank you Jesus for bringing me up out of the mire and setting my feet on solid ground. I pray that I may continue building a strong foundation in you and that through my walk and experiences you may be able to touch and impact someone’s life. Thank you for your goodness. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
HELLO SARAI/SARAH PART III
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The last two weeks I’ve had the blessing of studying Sarai. Her life, her struggles, her story. Before diving into today’s post go back and check out Part 1 and Part 2.
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HELLO SARAI PART I…
HELLO SARAI PART II…
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WHAT?!?!
God has shown up once more to renew the promise! Not only did God renew the promise of making Abram and Sarai the parents of multitudes, (original promise in Genesis 15:5 “He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspringd be.”) God also changes Abram’s name to Abraham and Sarai’s name to Sarah. This is the first time in the bible that God changes someone’s name but it’s not the last. These name changes excite my heart; it shouts of something new! It’s almost as if God wants Abraham and Sarah to see themselves in a new light. To refer to themselves by a new name implies that they have a new identity. They have a new destiny. Maybe what they thought would be the outcome of their lives is no more. Now they have new dreams and renewed hopes to trudge into the unknown future with.
Wow!
This passage strengthens my faith and makes my heart swell! If God could forgive Sarai’s mistakes and repeat a promise they thought would never come to pass then whose to say he can’t do the same for you and me?!
I hope this thought encourages you as much as it has encouraged me!
Nevertheless, I know the ending to this story. Sarah does not, so it doesn’t surprise me the way she responds to her heavenly visitors and the message they share with Abraham.
Let’s read the passage and discuss the three actions Sarah takes.
Genesis 18: 1-15.
Quick paraphrase, three angels show up at Abraham and Sarah’s. Abraham is very hospitable so he invites them in to rest, wash their feet and eat. He immediately gives word to Sarah and the servants to prepare some yummy goodness to bless their visitors with. The angels get straight to the point, 9 “Where is your wife Sarah?” they asked him. “There, in the tent,” he said. 10 Then one of them said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife will have a son.”
Now I just have to point out how interesting it is to me that they asked Abraham about Sarah’s location. A part of me feels like they already knew where she was and they wanted her to overhear that they knew she could hear the conversation.
Why do I think this?
Let me show you with verse 10 “…Now Sarah was listening at the entrance to the tent, which was behind him…”
#1 Sarah eavesdropped.
Tsst tsst tsst. But. Don’t we do this at times? Don’t we try to listen in on God’s conversations with other people looking for some clue, hint or something that will give us the link we think we are missing? Don’t we ever ask our friends or loved ones… “So what did God say to you…?” and we do our best not to add, “about me” at the end of that question. I know I have. And if I don’t it’s only because I don’t want them to think I’m rude.
What she does next convicts my heart even further.
12 So Sarah laughed to herself as she thought, “After I am worn out and my lord is old, will I now have this pleasure?”
#2 Sarah laughed.
Uuufff. Talk about a spiritual punch in the face! How many times does God lay a promise on our hearts and our reaction is to laugh in his face? Whenever we respond in this manner we are literally saying, “I do not believe that you will keep your promise, God.” I can’t imagine how this grieves our Heavenly Father. He wants so badly to bless us and we prevent the blessings from flowing because of our disbelief and lack of faith.
Sarah’s third action is the kicker. It wasn’t enough for her to eavesdrop and laugh but then she….
15 Sarah was afraid, so she lied and said, “I did not laugh.”
#3 Sarah lied.
This girl had angst. OK. She reacted out of fear but that doesn’t excuse her for lying! Does that sound judgy? Like I have a right to judge! Seriously, am I the only one who gets freaked out at times and doesn’t know what else to do but lie? When your dreams are so big that they scare you out of your wits isn’t it easier to just lie and say, “Naw, I’m good where I’m at.”? Call me crazy but I completely get Sarah. She was pushing 90 when these angels came to visit. She did not believe her body could handle it but next week we will see how God had other plans.
To close this out, let me say how one of my favorite parts of the entire passage is when the angel responds to Sarah in verse 15… But he said, “Yes, you did laugh.”
I love this for two reasons:
1. He confronted her. He didn’t let her slide. He told her to her face that he knew she was lying.
2. He doesn’t take the promise back. I’m sure he understood her fear the same way God understands our fears today.
Memory Verse: Proverbs 3:25-26
Proverbs 3:25 You need not be afraid of sudden disaster or the destruction that comes upon the wicked, 26 for the Lord is your security. He will keep your foot from being caught in a trap.
Prayer for you:
Heavenly Father I pray that you may grab hold of every reader. I pray that you may reveal to them the dreams and promises you’ve placed on their hearts. I ask you Lord to remind them of these promises. That no matter what they have done or not done they may be confident that nothing can separate your love from them. Help us to accept your promises with confidence instead of incredulous laughter. Help us to not be afraid of your path for us but strengthen our faith that we may chase after you and your plan with reckless abandon. Thank you Lord because you hear our prayers and move behind the scenes. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
HELLO SARAI PART II
Last week I introduced Sarai. I spoke about how her desperation led her to influence her husband to make an unwise choice.
Read Hello Sarai Part I here.
This week I want to explore the aftermath of Sarai’s choices.
Sarai took control of the situation thinking she could force the promise to come to life. She thought that maybe she was not the one God would fulfill the promise through. In Genesis 16:2 Sarai said to Abram, “The LORD has prevented me from having children. Go and sleep with my servant. Perhaps I can have children through her.” And Abram agreed with Sarai’s proposal.
1. Did she think her servant would be okay with this arrangement?
2. Was she planning on just taking the baby away from the servant girl and raising it as her own?
3. Did she truly believe God would bless this arrangement?
4. Where did her faith go?
Post Abram’s agreeing to sleep with the servant girl, we quickly see the situation spiral out of Sarai’s control.
I want to share two points that I found in this passage.
Verse
4 tells us that Abram slept with Sarai’s servant and she became pregnant.Read her reaction, “when she knew she was pregnant, she began to despise her mistress.“
Uh oh!
So much for Sarai’s plan to create a family with her servant’s child!
As we continue reading Genesis 16 we learn what the servant’s reaction causes. Verse 5 Then Sarai said to Abram, “You are responsible for the wrong I am suffering. I put my slave in your arms, and now that she knows she is pregnant, she despises me.”
Hold up!!!!!
“You are responsible…”? Really Sarai?!?!
Last time I checked whose idea was this?!?! Who came up with this genius plan?
Point #1: Sarai’s plan caused division in her marriage.
She made the choice to suggest and encourage it but instead of taking responsibility for her poor decisions she blames Abram. I’m not saying that he is completely innocent in this, he very well could have said NO! He didn’t have to accept the indecent proposal but he did… womp!
In verse
6 Abram responds to Sarai. He put’s it back on her washing his hands of the whole situation. “Your slave is in your hands,” Abram said. “Do with her whatever you think best.” Then Sarai mistreated Hagar…Point #2 Sarai’s plan causes unmanageable resentment towards her servant.
I can’t imagine the pain Sarai felt in these moments. I mean, she’s been married for decades and has undoubtedly slept with her husband enough times to conceive. Her servant sleeps with her husband ONE time and immediately becomes pregnant! I’m tempted to excuse her resentment. I feel badly for Sarai. I think I might have responded the same way if I had been in her sandals. This situation reminds me of the quote,
“Hurting people hurt people.”
That’s exactly what happens here. I think Sarai, a normally God fearing woman doesn’t know what to do with her emotions and finds herself treating her poor servant girl horribly.
There is so much to learn from this portion of the story.
Firstly, it reminds me to be introspective. It’s so important to make the time to self evaluate our choices and reactions.
Let’s make sure we take responsibility for our own.
Secondly, I learned that it’s easy to lash out when we don’t get our way. Sarai is totally throwing a temper tantrum here because things did not go as she planned. I can relate. I’ve acted out tantrum style in my adult life… haven’t you?!
I think we benefit from being aware of our emotions and taking control of them before they take control of us.
Let’s not mistreat those around us who are innocent bystanders to our messes. Yea, I know. Easier said than done, but if we learn to control our thoughts we will be able to grab hold of our emotions which stem from our thoughts. I love how much this story is like a telenovela!
I’m excited to say that I will be extending the three week series to a four week Sarai/Sarah series.
Next week I want to explore chapter 18 and see what God says next. I hope you can stop by again next Friday and take a look at Hello Sarai Part III. Memory Verse: Philippians 4:8
Philippians 4:8 And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.
My Prayer for you:
Heavenly Father, thank you for your precious word. I believe it is alive and working in us. I pray for all of the readers who are struggling with the guilt or shame of a poor decision. I ask you to help them surrender those emotions to you. Help them accept that even though the choice was bad they are NOT bad. I pray, Father God, that you may minister to someone through Sarai’s story. That we may see and understand the relevance that her experiences then have to our lives today. Help us lean into your word and glean the wisdom you desire for us to gain. Thank you, Lord. I am confident that you will show up and show off in the lives of my readers. I trust that you guide us to reflect on our choices and emotions that we may not blame or hurt the innocent but that we may allow you to turn all of our circumstances into good for your Glory! In Jesus’ name, Amen!
SUPERSTARNAT 