“DO NOT BE AFRAID”
Genesis 21:17
June 21, 2014
Westmount Park United Church
What a fearful and awesome scene is painted by our reading from the book of Genesis, the story of Hagar and Ishmael being rescued from the brink of death after they have been driven out of Abraham’s household into the wilderness. First we are assaulted by the cruelty of two of the great heroes of the bible, Abraham and Sarah, who heartlessly expel Hagar and her young son and force them out into the wilderness with such meagre resources that they might very well die there. And then, as we stumble with the poor woman and her child into the desert, we sink with her into the depths of despair, as under the heat of the relentless sun she resolves herself to her fate, realizing that she is going to die of thirst, and willing enough to face her own death, but deeply sorrowful that her child must also die. What a dreadful story of life turned suddenly and cruelly wrong. Hagar had done no wrong. As a dutiful servant of her master Abraham she had born him a son when his wife was unable to. She was absolutely innocent of any wrong doing. Certainly her young child Ishmael was blameless and not deserving of so cruel a fate. From being a valued member of the household Hagar had become a pariah. From being a cherished son Ishmael had become the victim of Sarah’s heartless jealousy. And so Hagar and Ishmael suffer utter rejection. They are driven from a caring place which had provided security and happiness, expelled from a household that had once valued and cherished them, and forced out into the barren wilderness which is bitterly cold by night and relentlessly hot by day. And there, in the depths of despair and on the brink of death, there comes an unbelievable message from God – Do not be afraid. Miraculously at the moment of deepest despair, literally on the brink of death, there is hope, there is life, there is water in the wilderness.
Do not be afraid. Of course that message comes in moments when we are afraid, and not only at times that are as desperate as what Hagar and Ishmael faced when they were about to die of thirst. There can be all sorts of times and circumstances in life when we are fearful and need to overcome our fears, times when we hesitate to go forward because we are unsure, when we have doubts about ourselves and others, when the risks seem too great. There can be all sorts of times and circumstances in life when we really need to hear the message, “Do not be afraid,” times when we need to hear that counsel, and to believe it, so that our lives can move forward creatively and productively, so that we can realize our potential, so that we can mature and grow stronger, so that we can succeed in achieving whatever task or challenge lies before us.
We do have resources for overcoming our fears. We have our own inner strengths and abilities, the capacity to overcome reluctance and timidity and fear with our own resolve and fortitude. Since many fears are irrational we can overcome them with our capacity to think clearly and act with reason. Or we can, by summoning our own inner courage, overcome real obstacles which we have good reason to fear. We can also count on others to help us when the counsel, “Do not be afraid,” is needed. It might come from family members or friends or business associates or even professionals. “Do not be afraid” might be the guidance we need from an investment counsellor, or it might be the advice we need when we are contemplating career choices as a youth, or career changes as an adult. It might be the counsel we need to receive when dealing with challenges in interpersonal or family relationships.
Much of the time we can deal with our fears by bringing forth our own inner resources or by taking to heart the advice of others. But there are times when fear grips our souls with such intensity that there is no inner strength or outward counsel which can overcome it. There are times when life drives us into the wilderness and all our defences are stripped away, because of severe illness, or because of deep losses like the death of loved ones, or because of failures and disappointments in ourselves or in others, or because we are facing death. When our world comes crashing down around us because everything has gone wrong and there seems no hope for tomorrow then there are simply no resources within which can allow us to say, “I can make it,” and for others to offer that counsel would only be trite and insensitive. At those times we are with Hagar and Ishmael in the wilderness, with all comfort and security stripped away, with whatever meagre resources we had left exhausted, and with all our hopes and dreams shattered. At that moment, like Hagar, all we can do is weep. And in the midst of our tears we hear the message from God – Do not be afraid.
There’s a happy ending to the story of Hagar and Ishmael. They do not die of thirst, for miraculously there is a well of water in the wilderness. Not only does Hagar’s son not die under the hot desert sun that day, he even establishes a strong and flourishing clan of people. But not all human stories which find people driven into the wilderness have that sort of sudden reversal, with good fortune coming just as swiftly as it departed in the first place. The real life wildernesses in which we find ourselves have no guarantees at all of story book happy endings, but that does not in any way change the fundamental truth that when we are in the depths of despair, when we are gripped by fear with no reason to hope, the message from God is still clear and true – Do not be afraid. Whether or not the journey into the wilderness has a story book ending there is nothing to fear. There is nothing to fear because God is always with us, and whether or not we find our way through wilderness experiences into times of good fortune, there are springs of life giving water which well up from God’s spirit in the most arid and devastated times. When our life’s journey has led us into wilderness times and places, to the point where only God’s reassurance can satisfy our fearful souls, then we realize in a deeply felt way what we have known all along, but have maybe never fully taken to heart, that God is with us, that God is always with us.
We do have many resources for meeting and overcoming the challenges of our fears, so that we can live creative, courageous and productive lives. We have inner resources, we have the support of family, friends and comrades, but most important of all we have the strength and courage which comes from God.