May the mumbling commence!
There comes a point when we need to
leave our own plans and machinations behind.
We must follow the will of the Lord for our lives. It’s often painful. But it’s always the best thing for us to do
in the long run. Read from Peterson’s The Message:
Abraham got up early the next morning, got
some food together
and a canteen
of water for Hagar, put them on her
back and sent her away with the child. She wandered off into the desert of Beersheba. When the water was gone, she left the child under a
shrub and went off,
fifty yards or so. She said, “I can’t watch
my son
die.” As she
sat, she broke into sobs.
Meanwhile, God heard the boy crying.
The angel of God called from Heaven to Hagar, “What’s wrong, Hagar? Don’t be
afraid. God has heard the boy and knows the fix he’s in.
Up now, go get the boy. Hold him
tight. I’m
going to make of him
a great nation.”
Just
then God opened her eyes. She looked. She saw a well of water.
She went to it and filled her canteen
and gave the boy a long,
cool drink.
God was on the boy’s side
as he grew up.
He lived out in the desert and became a skilled
archer. He
lived in the Paran wilderness. And his
mother got him a wife from Egypt. (Genesis 21:14-21)
Now read the same passage from the
NIV translation:
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.
When the water in the
skin was gone, she put the boy under one of
the bushes. Then she went off and sat down nearby, about a bowshot away, for she thought, "I cannot watch the boy die."
And as she sat there nearby, she began to sob.
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. Lift the boy up and take him by
the hand, for I will make him into a great
nation."
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.
God was with the boy as he
grew up. He lived in the desert and became an archer. While he was living in the Desert of Paran,
his mother got a wife for him from Egypt. (Genesis
21:14-21)
Peterson almost imperceptibly
continues his softening of the break between Abraham and Hagar and “the boy”. It can be seen in the use of “my son” rather
than “the boy”. “I can’t watch my son
die.”
There is also the question about
the presence of God with the boy. Was
God “on the boy’s side” (Peterson)? Or
was God simply “with the boy” (NIV)? I
think it’s an important distinction.
So many times, we like to think
that God’s on our side. But that’s not
the right way to be thinking. The better
idea… a better question would be: Are we on God’s side? Then God will be with us.
Indeed, may we look beyond our
distress and see the provision and path that the Lord has put before us. May we jettison our own plans and
machinations so that the will of the Lord will be done in our lives. Then God will be with us because we have chosen
God’s Way.
Enough mumbling for now…
Peace Out
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