Water to Drink

So the child grew and was weaned. And Abraham made a great feast on the same day that Isaac was weaned.

And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, scoffing.  Therefore she said to Abraham, “Cast out this bondwoman and her son; for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, namely with Isaac.” And the matter was very displeasing in Abraham’s sight because of his son.

But God said to Abraham, “Do not let it be displeasing in your sight because of the lad or because of your bondwoman. Whatever Sarah has said to you, listen to her voice; for in Isaac your seed shall be called. Yet I will also make a nation of the son of the bondwoman, because he is your seed.”

So Abraham rose early in the morning, and took bread and a skin of water; and putting it on her shoulder, he gave it and the boy to Hagar, and sent her away. Then she departed and wandered in the Wilderness of Beersheba. And the water in the skin was used up, and she placed the boy under one of the shrubs. Then she went and sat down across from him at a distance of about a bowshot; for she said to herself, “Let me not see the death of the boy.” So she sat opposite him, and lifted her voice and wept.

And God heard the voice of the lad. Then the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said to her, “What ails you, Hagar? Fear not, for God has heard the voice of the lad where he is.  Arise, lift up the lad and hold him with your hand, for I will make him a great nation.”

Then God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water. And she went and filled the skin with water, and gave the lad a drink. So God was with the lad; and he grew and dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer. He dwelt in the Wilderness of Paran; and his mother took a wife for him from the land of Egypt. Genesis 21:8-21

A devotion from the Upper Room recently caught my attention…a story from Genesis 21: Hagar and her son Ishmael are in the desert. Literally and figuratively. God called to Hagar from heaven, giving her hope that her son, Ishmael, wouldn’t die from dehydration. He would provide water to drink, saving mother and son from certain death.

The devotion went on to say that God doesn't abandon us. I thought further on this theme: God sends ways to help us, and sometimes those are through others. Who is your “water to drink” today? For whom will you be “water to drink”? During this time of social isolation and quarantine, uncertainty, sadness, and fear, can you be someone’s “water to drink”? Can you show appreciation for those being your "water to drink"?

Prayer: Dear Lord, help us minister to others when we see a need. Show us ways to empathize and serve, as your son, Jesus, showed us during His time on earth. Help us when we don’t know the words to say. Reveal to us the actions you would have us demonstrate to show others Your love. Let us express our gratefulness to those who share love and concern when we need it. In Jesus name, Amen.

Donna Gustafson