The Light at the End of the Tunnel

So she called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, “You are a God of seeing,” for she said, “Truly here I have seen him who looks after me.”

Genesis 16: 13 (ESV)



In Genesis 16, Hagar feels Sarai and the miserable life she's been living. In the wilderness, an angel finds her and tells her to return home. Hagar learns from the angel that she's pregnant and will give birth to a son, who she should name Ishmael.

In verse 13 we see that it took this one encounter for Hagar to recognize an attribute of God.

Had Hagar stayed stuck in the life she was living with Abram and Sarai, she may never have come face to face with the presence of the "God of seeing." 

I've written about this before, but it bears repeating: our comfort zone keeps us stunted and small. Comfort keeps us confused about who God is. 

Pain, however, opens the pathway to His provision and our recognizing what He does and responding in gratitude. And pain will come to us all, it's a matter of "when" and not "if."

I think it's also important to note that Hagar acknowledges the angel. I'm not sure if you can ignore an angel when one appears in front of you, but I know we can ignore the Holy Spirit that lives inside of us. Hagar may have had a hard time ignoring the angel, and that worked to her benefit. She learned of a future of blessings for herself and her son and could look past the pain to the light at the end of the tunnel.

What are you missing out on because you're ignoring the Holy Spirit playing it safe in the comfort zone? 

To those that acknowledge the Lord, if you're heavy with pain and misery, light is promised at the end of the tunnel. Sometimes we see light relatively soon, sometimes it takes what feels like a long time to us. Months and years might go by before we see relief.

Sometimes the light never appears earthside, but only as the promise of eternal life God gives to all believers who hear His Word, repent of their sins, confess that Jesus is the Christ, and receive the Holy Spirit through baptism. 

All the love,

Emily


P.S. Feel free to contact me at admin@tulipsandbasil.com!

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