A Story of God and All of Us - By Roma Downey Page 0,14
is if he is eager to join the conversation.
Sarah looks hard at her husband. They have been through so much
together, but it is as if she is looking at him for the first time. "Either you decide," she tells him in a steady yet angry voice, "or let God decide." She storms out of the tent, carrying Isaac on her hip.
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Abraham, feeling the considerable weight of that long-ago night with Hagar, sits down and ponders the fate of his two young boys. He prays for God's guidance and receives it. Though he overflows with sadness at the mere thought of it, he knows that he must follow the instructions that God is now placing upon his heart. God tells Abraham to listen to Sarah. The inheritance will go to Isaac. That is God's decision. It means that there is no more place for Hagar and Ishmael in his camp, but God reassures Abraham that they will be taken care of, and that the children of Ishmael will also become a great nation.
Abraham is devastated as he delivers the news that Ishmael will have to go out into the world and make his own fortune, but that does not compare with how he feels as Ishmael and Hagar prepare to set out into the wilderness.
It's morning. Flat bread is turned over a low cooking fire. Hagar slips the two warm loaves into a small sack. Ishmael comes to help. He is quiet and sad, but devoted to his mother. Ishmael will travel in just sandals, a scarf atop his head, and a knee-length robe. Hagar is dressed much the same, but with a
hooded smock that will keep away the desert chill.
Abraham waits at the edge of camp, holding a skin of water. He places the strap over Ishmael's shoulder and let's his hand linger tenderly on his son for a moment. "Good-bye," he mumbles, overcome with sadness, then looks Ishmael in the eye. "My boy, God will one day bless you with many children."
His own eyes fill with tears.
Ishmael says nothing, though his eyes study Abraham's features,
memorizing his father's appearance. The boy is stoic. Sarah stands off in the distance. This is being done at her insistence, and she knows full well that her demands might lead to the deaths of Hagar and Ishmael. She knows she created this problem in the first place by insisting that Abraham sleep with Hagar. So this is her solution. She is surprised to find that she does not take delight in forcing Hagar and Ishmael out. Sarah knows it needs to be done.
This may be a cruel act, but she is not
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a cruel woman. For if this is not done, grave trouble could arise when Abraham's two boys grow to be men.
Abraham and Sarah watch as Hagar and Ishmael begin their journey. One moment, they are specks in the distance, then they disappear.
"Be brave," Hagar tells Ishmael, though she is saying it to herself as well.
The two of them will wander out into the desert alone, yet she trusts God to protect them. Hagar prays to God for help, and God provides it. Less than a week into their journey, they will run out of water, and Hagar will fear for their lives. An angel of the Lord will appear to them at that time, promising that Ishmael will one day become the leader of a great nation. When the angel departs, a well filled with water will suddenly appear to Hagar and Ishmael, saving their lives.
Ten more years pass.
Isaac emerges from his family's tent, with its tasseled doorway and striped fabric walls. He yawns and stretches as he makes his way past the goat pen and over to the cooking fire, where Sarah grinds grain to make flour for the morning bread.
Abraham has been awake for hours. His age is truly beginning to show, and
though he slept the night through, he is extremely tired. Weary. Life has not been the same since he sent Hagar and Ishmael away. Abraham sees his life slipping away. He doesn't feel like the leader God intended him to be. He doesn't feel worthy of God, of the Promised Land, or the prospect that his descendants will be as numerous as the stars. His faith has not wavered, nor has he veered from God's plan since that long-ago night when lack of trust sent him into Hagar's tent. As he gets older with each passing day, Abraham ponders his purpose.