God's Tapestry
Genesis 21:1-21
Message #12
A tapestry is a thick piece of fabric in which someone can weave a beautiful picture or a unique design together using threads of different colors. But when the design or picture of the tapestry is finished, the front looks different than the back.
The front becomes this beautifully detailed image that a skilled artist creates that people admire. It is smooth and pleasing to the eye. It’s put on display for people to see. The back becomes this tangled, knotted-up mess of different colors going in different directions. It holds no specific pattern or picture. It’s often without shape or design. Honestly, it looks pretty chaotic.
What is awesome about this example is God does the exact same thing in our lives, in your life, and in my life. God is at work in ways that are higher than ours.
As the story of Abraham has progressed until this point, Abraham has, again and again, made a mess out of the promise that the Lord gave him and his wife, Sarah. Over and over again, Abraham tries to take matters into his own hands and doesn’t trust God. The mess Abraham makes in his life is the back of the tapestry.
But we see in Abraham’s life that despite the knotted-up, tangled mess that Abraham makes out of his life, the Lord is at work in awesome ways in his life to weave it all together into his own divine plan that would result in Abraham becoming the Father of our Faith, and the Father of the Nation of Israel giving God the ultimate glory (the front of the tapestry). God is weaving Abraham’s life together.
Genesis 21:1-2 (NLT)
1 The Lord kept his word and did for Sarah exactly what he had promised.
2 She became pregnant, and she gave birth to a son for Abraham in his old age. This happened at just the time God had said it would.
This is the beginning of the Lord fulfilling the promise of Isaac’s birth! Like it says at the beginning here, the Lord kept his word. This miraculous promise took place at the exact time that the Lord had said it would a year prior in Genesis 18. The Lord there told Abraham for the second time that he would have a son from Sarah in a year. And the Lord kept his word.
And this is still true to us today, guys. He still keeps his word for us today.
2 Corinthians 1:20 says, 20 For all of God’s promises have been fulfilled in Christ… through Christ… for his glory.
All the promises that he has promised, all the things that he has said he would do, all the things that he has promised you in your life, he keeps his word. He keeps his word at exactly his time, the way he has designed to design the tapestry of your life, of my life, of our life as a church, of your life as an individual, and in my life as well.
This was the power of God on display for his glory in weaving Abraham’s life together for Abraham’s good. I can imagine the happiness and excitement that overflowed out of Sarah’s tent as Isaac was delivered. The unreal moment in time that Sarah and Abraham were caught up in as the promise of God had become a reality, their baby boy named Isaac was born. As emotions were high, I could imagine Abraham speeding out of the tent and holing Isaac up in front of all the people of Abraham’s city of tents as they celebrated and shouted in joy like a scene from Lion King when Mufasa holds up Simba and the entire valley cheers.
Then we see Abraham’s response in obedience to the Lord’s command.
Genesis 3-5 (NLT)
3 And Abraham named their son Isaac.
4 Eight days after Isaac was born, Abraham circumcised him as God had commanded.
5 Abraham was 100 years old when Isaac was born.
In spite of the mistake, in spite of the mess that Abraham made, he responds in obedience here by naming his son Isaac and circumcising him at eight days old as the Lord had commanded him in Genesis 17. God had told him that he was going to have a son from his wife Sarah, who would be named Isaac, which means “laughter.”
Abraham made several mistakes. He lies two times about Sarah and his relationship with Sarah for fear of his own life and lack of faith in God. And then he agreed to his wife Sarah’s plan for him to sleep with Hagar, her Egyptian servant, in order to take God’s tapestry, God’s plan, into his own hands. But Abraham didn’t let the tangled, knotted-up messes he made in his past prevent him from being obedient to the Lord here in this section of his life.
So, for us, we can’t let the tangled messes in our life keep us from being obedient to the Lord. The beautiful thing about the God that we serve, the beautiful thing about Jesus is that each day you can say, “Lord, today I will serve you. Today I will live for you. Yesterday I messed up. The day before that, I fell short, Lord. But today, let me live for you.”
Don’t let the tangled messes from your past mistakes keep you from trusting in God’s woven plan, his tapestry that he is weaving together of your life. That is how the enemy works. He’ll try to use the guilt of your past mistakes to try and keep you from being obedient to God today. Don’t let him.
We serve a God whose grace is overwhelming. We serve a God whose love is overwhelming. We serve a God who can move in spite of what is happening, of what mistakes we’ve made.
Now, let’s look at Sarah’s reaction to the Lord’s promise being fulfilled.
Genesis 21:6-7 (NLT)
6 And Sarah declared, “God has brought me laughter. All who hear about this will laugh with me.
7 Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse a baby? Yet I have given Abraham a son in his old age!”
This laughter was different from the way she laughs in Genesis 18. That laugh when Sarah was in the tent was of doubt; this laugh was a laughter of joy and excitement. Sarah was holding her baby son, her first child. As she held him in her arms, inspecting the details of his face. What a beautiful moment. Her heart was singing in joyous laughter instead of doubt.
God’s grace rained down on Abraham’s tent city that day as a ninety-year-old woman gave birth to the son of promise, who now had a journey ahead of him. God was weaving Abraham’s life together for the beautiful and extraordinary picture that God set in motion to make a great nation through Abraham, beginning right here with Isaac’s birth.
This is the turning point in Abraham’s faith. This is where his faith in the Lord took off. From this point on, from the birth of Isaac, he doesn’t look back. Now he is drawing closer to the greatest test of faith he would face in following the Lord.
But remember Ishmael, Abraham’s sixteen-year-old son he had with his wife’s Egyptian servant named Hagar. As joy swept throughout the tent city because of Isaac’s birth, it skipped over two people, as Ishmael’s future now conflicted with Isaac’s.
Let’s keep reading together as God redirects everything into his woven plan.
Genesis 21:8-10 (NLT)
8 When Isaac grew up and was about to be weaned, Abraham prepared a huge feast to celebrate the occasion.
9 But Sarah saw Ishmael—the son of Abraham and her Egyptian servant Hagar—making fun of her son, Isaac.
10 So she turned to Abraham and demanded, “Get rid of that slave woman and her son. He is not going to share the inheritance with my son, Isaac. I won’t have it!”
Now that Isaac was about three years old, his father threw a great party for him, and I’m sure with the best roasted calf and best floured bread. I can imagine the jealousy that grew in Ishmael’s heart. Though the Bible doesn’t say that Ishmael was violent towards Isaac, he mocked and laughed at Isaac. This was a laugh that caught Sarah’s attention as she saw the possible harm that could come to her son Isaac by the hands of Ishmael.
Sarah was trying to protect her son Isaac. But her request was made in anger, bitterness, and jealousy that grew throughout the sixteen years of Ishmael’s life. Sarah felt no love for Hagar and Ishmael. Although this wasn’t correct, God was still weaving this story together for Abraham’s good and for God’s own glory.
Genesis 21:11-13 (NLT)
11 This upset Abraham very much because Ishmael was his son.
12 But God told Abraham, “Do not be upset over the boy and your servant. Do whatever Sarah tells you, for Isaac is the son through whom your descendants will be counted.
13 But I will also make a nation of the descendants of Hagar’s son because he is your son, too.”
Abraham was at a crossroads; his heart is torn between his two sons, his oldest, Ishmael, who was sixteen, and his youngest, Isaac, who was three. He loved them both deeply. In this moment of difficulty, Abraham hears the Lord’s direction. He is directed by a continual assurance that God is weaving a plan for both of his boys. Isaac was the chosen son whom the promise would be fulfilled through, and through Ishmael, he would make a big nation.
Here we see the knotted-up, tangled threads of the life of Abraham. The mess that Abraham and his wife have made through their mistakes, God begins to graciously redirect them. And now God is weaving the threads together into his own beautiful, divine picture overriding all things for Abraham’s good and God’s own glory.
Church, no matter the mistakes you have made, no matter the knots that have kept you stuck, no matter the threads that you are entangled in – God is at work weaving your life together into the beautiful tapestry he is creating for your good and for his glory.
Here in Romans Chapter 8, it says this.
Romans 8:28 (NIV)
28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
Even in a bad thing, God is at work for your good and his glory. We have to sit here and think to ourselves, if this verse is true (which it is), then God is at work in all things. If so, then he is at work weaving my life together for my good despite the mistakes of my past; he is creating a beautiful tapestry out of the mess of my life for his glory.
What I am not doing here is demeaning the suffering, demeaning the hardships, demeaning the bad things that have happened to you or that you’ve gone through in your life. What I am saying is even through that brokenness, even through that loss, even through that difficulty, God is at work in all things for those that love him. God is at work for good in your lives and for his glory.
Let’s keep reading.
Genesis 21:14 (NLT)
14 So Abraham got up early the next morning, prepared food and a container of water, and strapped them on Hagar’s shoulders. Then he sent her away with their son, and she wandered aimlessly in the wilderness of Beersheba.
A bitter moment as Abraham wasn’t just listening to the demands of his wife, but as he was being obedient to the directions of God to do as Sarah had said. A bitter moment as he watched his son, who had been the sole focus of his fatherly love for thirteen years and leave.
He doesn’t give them a donkey or servants to help, or shelter to take, he just gives her a single container of water and some food. Abraham is now trusting God’s woven plan for his life and his children’s.
Genesis 21:15-16 (NLT)
15 When the water was gone, she put the boy in the shade of a bush.
16 Then she went and sat down by herself about a hundred yards away. “I don’t want to watch the boy die,” she said, as she burst into tears.
The heat grew, their skin was sunburnt, the container of water ran out, and dehydration was in full effect as Hagar’s heart cried out in brokenness for what was left of her son’s life.
The reality is that God works in and through the afflictions and hardships we face in our lives. In the moments that we come to complete brokenness because of the circumstances in our life, God uses them to mature our faith in him. This world is broken, and because this world is broken, we’ve all felt pain and sorrow. All of us have, if not – will – face grief as we lose people we love, as life breaks apart, and as our bodies decay.
Look, God doesn’t cause the wicked and evil things of this world to take place. He works in and through them and uses them to weave together the threads of your life to mature your faith in him.
Church, like I said before, when we examine a tapestry piece, the front looks different than the back. The front beautiful – the back chaotic. The mess in the back is all the mess that takes place because of the sickness and wickedness of this world, not to mention the mistakes we make.
But God, the marvelous artist, has an extraordinary way of using it all for our good and his glory in weaving a beautiful tapestry out of the threads of our life.
But let me ask you this. Who do you cry out to when all is lost? God? Yourself? When you place your complete faith in God, he becomes the marvelous artist who weaves your life together. He becomes who you cry out to when you are walking through the valleys of this life, when you are walking through the brokenness of this life, when you’re walking through the difficulties that come with living, when you’re walking in moments where you feel alone. God becomes the one you cry out to.
That’s why it’s important as believers, if life is good, to remember that God is there and that our relationship with God is something that isn’t just a religious thing where God is mystically away in some desolate land. He’s real. He is tangible, and he desires a relationship with you – for your good and for his glory. He desires to create a beautiful tapestry out of your life. Cry out to him whether life is good or bad.
Let’s keep reading to see God’s tapestry, his plan.
Genesis 21:17-19 (NLT)
17 But God heard the boy crying, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven, “Hagar, what’s wrong? Do not be afraid! God has heard the boy crying as he lies there.
18 Go to him and comfort him, for I will make a great nation from his descendants.”
19 Then God opened Hagar’s eyes, and she saw a well full of water. She quickly filled her water container and gave the boy a drink.
As the thoughts settled in Hagar’s mind that this was where she and her boy would die, God called to her from Heaven. She heard God’s voice like a cool refreshing wind in the heat of the desert day that was about to take her son’s life. She clung to God with the little strength she had left as God promised that he would make a great nation out of Ishmael. Then God opened her eyes and informed Hagar of the well of water, the well of salvation that was near to them. So, she then quickly ran to it.
It’s no different here this morning. Let God open your eyes, cry out to him, and he will come into your life. He will weave the threads together of your life as you quickly run to him.
Let’s read the final verses of this section.
Genesis 21:20-21 (NLT)
20 And God was with the boy as he grew up in the wilderness. He became a skillful archer,
21 and he settled in the wilderness of Paran. His mother arranged for him to marry a woman from the land of Egypt.
God was with Abraham, and God was with the son of the promise, Isaac. And God was with Ishmael. God was and will continue to weave everything together!
Ecclesiastes 3:11 (NLT)
11 Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end.
God is at work in your life. The fact that you are here this morning proves it. God desires to weave all of your mistakes and all of your ups and downs into the beautiful tapestry of your life that is centered, rooted, and built upon Jesus Christ from the minute that you choose to accept him as your Lord and Savior until eternity.
Hagar would have died if she didn’t run to the well of salvation. Ismael would have died if he hadn’t accepted the water.
Let me read from Ephesians.
Ephesians 2:10 (NLT)
10 For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.
You, me, us – we are God’s masterpiece. The God who is infinitely in control, who holds power, who holds our lives in the palm of his hand, who flung every star into its place – that God who is all-powerful desires you and says that you are his masterpiece. That is incredible. It’s crazy to comprehend that throughout the insecurities, the insufficiencies, the mistakes, the broken vessels that we are; God says that we are his masterpiece. The Greek word for masterpiece is POIEMA which means “workmanship, masterpiece.” A work of art, like a poem. That’s who God says you are.
Can you trust that God is at work in your life – for your good? Can you trust that he is weaving a beautiful tapestry out of the tangled mess you’ve made of your life?
Trust God today. Put the tangled threads of your life in his hands and trust him to be at work in all things weaving your life together into a tapestry of his making.
The front becomes this beautifully detailed image that a skilled artist creates that people admire. It is smooth and pleasing to the eye. It’s put on display for people to see. The back becomes this tangled, knotted-up mess of different colors going in different directions. It holds no specific pattern or picture. It’s often without shape or design. Honestly, it looks pretty chaotic.
What is awesome about this example is God does the exact same thing in our lives, in your life, and in my life. God is at work in ways that are higher than ours.
As the story of Abraham has progressed until this point, Abraham has, again and again, made a mess out of the promise that the Lord gave him and his wife, Sarah. Over and over again, Abraham tries to take matters into his own hands and doesn’t trust God. The mess Abraham makes in his life is the back of the tapestry.
But we see in Abraham’s life that despite the knotted-up, tangled mess that Abraham makes out of his life, the Lord is at work in awesome ways in his life to weave it all together into his own divine plan that would result in Abraham becoming the Father of our Faith, and the Father of the Nation of Israel giving God the ultimate glory (the front of the tapestry). God is weaving Abraham’s life together.
Genesis 21:1-2 (NLT)
1 The Lord kept his word and did for Sarah exactly what he had promised.
2 She became pregnant, and she gave birth to a son for Abraham in his old age. This happened at just the time God had said it would.
This is the beginning of the Lord fulfilling the promise of Isaac’s birth! Like it says at the beginning here, the Lord kept his word. This miraculous promise took place at the exact time that the Lord had said it would a year prior in Genesis 18. The Lord there told Abraham for the second time that he would have a son from Sarah in a year. And the Lord kept his word.
And this is still true to us today, guys. He still keeps his word for us today.
2 Corinthians 1:20 says, 20 For all of God’s promises have been fulfilled in Christ… through Christ… for his glory.
All the promises that he has promised, all the things that he has said he would do, all the things that he has promised you in your life, he keeps his word. He keeps his word at exactly his time, the way he has designed to design the tapestry of your life, of my life, of our life as a church, of your life as an individual, and in my life as well.
This was the power of God on display for his glory in weaving Abraham’s life together for Abraham’s good. I can imagine the happiness and excitement that overflowed out of Sarah’s tent as Isaac was delivered. The unreal moment in time that Sarah and Abraham were caught up in as the promise of God had become a reality, their baby boy named Isaac was born. As emotions were high, I could imagine Abraham speeding out of the tent and holing Isaac up in front of all the people of Abraham’s city of tents as they celebrated and shouted in joy like a scene from Lion King when Mufasa holds up Simba and the entire valley cheers.
Then we see Abraham’s response in obedience to the Lord’s command.
Genesis 3-5 (NLT)
3 And Abraham named their son Isaac.
4 Eight days after Isaac was born, Abraham circumcised him as God had commanded.
5 Abraham was 100 years old when Isaac was born.
In spite of the mistake, in spite of the mess that Abraham made, he responds in obedience here by naming his son Isaac and circumcising him at eight days old as the Lord had commanded him in Genesis 17. God had told him that he was going to have a son from his wife Sarah, who would be named Isaac, which means “laughter.”
Abraham made several mistakes. He lies two times about Sarah and his relationship with Sarah for fear of his own life and lack of faith in God. And then he agreed to his wife Sarah’s plan for him to sleep with Hagar, her Egyptian servant, in order to take God’s tapestry, God’s plan, into his own hands. But Abraham didn’t let the tangled, knotted-up messes he made in his past prevent him from being obedient to the Lord here in this section of his life.
So, for us, we can’t let the tangled messes in our life keep us from being obedient to the Lord. The beautiful thing about the God that we serve, the beautiful thing about Jesus is that each day you can say, “Lord, today I will serve you. Today I will live for you. Yesterday I messed up. The day before that, I fell short, Lord. But today, let me live for you.”
Don’t let the tangled messes from your past mistakes keep you from trusting in God’s woven plan, his tapestry that he is weaving together of your life. That is how the enemy works. He’ll try to use the guilt of your past mistakes to try and keep you from being obedient to God today. Don’t let him.
We serve a God whose grace is overwhelming. We serve a God whose love is overwhelming. We serve a God who can move in spite of what is happening, of what mistakes we’ve made.
Now, let’s look at Sarah’s reaction to the Lord’s promise being fulfilled.
Genesis 21:6-7 (NLT)
6 And Sarah declared, “God has brought me laughter. All who hear about this will laugh with me.
7 Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse a baby? Yet I have given Abraham a son in his old age!”
This laughter was different from the way she laughs in Genesis 18. That laugh when Sarah was in the tent was of doubt; this laugh was a laughter of joy and excitement. Sarah was holding her baby son, her first child. As she held him in her arms, inspecting the details of his face. What a beautiful moment. Her heart was singing in joyous laughter instead of doubt.
God’s grace rained down on Abraham’s tent city that day as a ninety-year-old woman gave birth to the son of promise, who now had a journey ahead of him. God was weaving Abraham’s life together for the beautiful and extraordinary picture that God set in motion to make a great nation through Abraham, beginning right here with Isaac’s birth.
This is the turning point in Abraham’s faith. This is where his faith in the Lord took off. From this point on, from the birth of Isaac, he doesn’t look back. Now he is drawing closer to the greatest test of faith he would face in following the Lord.
But remember Ishmael, Abraham’s sixteen-year-old son he had with his wife’s Egyptian servant named Hagar. As joy swept throughout the tent city because of Isaac’s birth, it skipped over two people, as Ishmael’s future now conflicted with Isaac’s.
Let’s keep reading together as God redirects everything into his woven plan.
Genesis 21:8-10 (NLT)
8 When Isaac grew up and was about to be weaned, Abraham prepared a huge feast to celebrate the occasion.
9 But Sarah saw Ishmael—the son of Abraham and her Egyptian servant Hagar—making fun of her son, Isaac.
10 So she turned to Abraham and demanded, “Get rid of that slave woman and her son. He is not going to share the inheritance with my son, Isaac. I won’t have it!”
Now that Isaac was about three years old, his father threw a great party for him, and I’m sure with the best roasted calf and best floured bread. I can imagine the jealousy that grew in Ishmael’s heart. Though the Bible doesn’t say that Ishmael was violent towards Isaac, he mocked and laughed at Isaac. This was a laugh that caught Sarah’s attention as she saw the possible harm that could come to her son Isaac by the hands of Ishmael.
Sarah was trying to protect her son Isaac. But her request was made in anger, bitterness, and jealousy that grew throughout the sixteen years of Ishmael’s life. Sarah felt no love for Hagar and Ishmael. Although this wasn’t correct, God was still weaving this story together for Abraham’s good and for God’s own glory.
Genesis 21:11-13 (NLT)
11 This upset Abraham very much because Ishmael was his son.
12 But God told Abraham, “Do not be upset over the boy and your servant. Do whatever Sarah tells you, for Isaac is the son through whom your descendants will be counted.
13 But I will also make a nation of the descendants of Hagar’s son because he is your son, too.”
Abraham was at a crossroads; his heart is torn between his two sons, his oldest, Ishmael, who was sixteen, and his youngest, Isaac, who was three. He loved them both deeply. In this moment of difficulty, Abraham hears the Lord’s direction. He is directed by a continual assurance that God is weaving a plan for both of his boys. Isaac was the chosen son whom the promise would be fulfilled through, and through Ishmael, he would make a big nation.
Here we see the knotted-up, tangled threads of the life of Abraham. The mess that Abraham and his wife have made through their mistakes, God begins to graciously redirect them. And now God is weaving the threads together into his own beautiful, divine picture overriding all things for Abraham’s good and God’s own glory.
Church, no matter the mistakes you have made, no matter the knots that have kept you stuck, no matter the threads that you are entangled in – God is at work weaving your life together into the beautiful tapestry he is creating for your good and for his glory.
Here in Romans Chapter 8, it says this.
Romans 8:28 (NIV)
28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
Even in a bad thing, God is at work for your good and his glory. We have to sit here and think to ourselves, if this verse is true (which it is), then God is at work in all things. If so, then he is at work weaving my life together for my good despite the mistakes of my past; he is creating a beautiful tapestry out of the mess of my life for his glory.
What I am not doing here is demeaning the suffering, demeaning the hardships, demeaning the bad things that have happened to you or that you’ve gone through in your life. What I am saying is even through that brokenness, even through that loss, even through that difficulty, God is at work in all things for those that love him. God is at work for good in your lives and for his glory.
Let’s keep reading.
Genesis 21:14 (NLT)
14 So Abraham got up early the next morning, prepared food and a container of water, and strapped them on Hagar’s shoulders. Then he sent her away with their son, and she wandered aimlessly in the wilderness of Beersheba.
A bitter moment as Abraham wasn’t just listening to the demands of his wife, but as he was being obedient to the directions of God to do as Sarah had said. A bitter moment as he watched his son, who had been the sole focus of his fatherly love for thirteen years and leave.
He doesn’t give them a donkey or servants to help, or shelter to take, he just gives her a single container of water and some food. Abraham is now trusting God’s woven plan for his life and his children’s.
Genesis 21:15-16 (NLT)
15 When the water was gone, she put the boy in the shade of a bush.
16 Then she went and sat down by herself about a hundred yards away. “I don’t want to watch the boy die,” she said, as she burst into tears.
The heat grew, their skin was sunburnt, the container of water ran out, and dehydration was in full effect as Hagar’s heart cried out in brokenness for what was left of her son’s life.
The reality is that God works in and through the afflictions and hardships we face in our lives. In the moments that we come to complete brokenness because of the circumstances in our life, God uses them to mature our faith in him. This world is broken, and because this world is broken, we’ve all felt pain and sorrow. All of us have, if not – will – face grief as we lose people we love, as life breaks apart, and as our bodies decay.
Look, God doesn’t cause the wicked and evil things of this world to take place. He works in and through them and uses them to weave together the threads of your life to mature your faith in him.
Church, like I said before, when we examine a tapestry piece, the front looks different than the back. The front beautiful – the back chaotic. The mess in the back is all the mess that takes place because of the sickness and wickedness of this world, not to mention the mistakes we make.
But God, the marvelous artist, has an extraordinary way of using it all for our good and his glory in weaving a beautiful tapestry out of the threads of our life.
But let me ask you this. Who do you cry out to when all is lost? God? Yourself? When you place your complete faith in God, he becomes the marvelous artist who weaves your life together. He becomes who you cry out to when you are walking through the valleys of this life, when you are walking through the brokenness of this life, when you’re walking through the difficulties that come with living, when you’re walking in moments where you feel alone. God becomes the one you cry out to.
That’s why it’s important as believers, if life is good, to remember that God is there and that our relationship with God is something that isn’t just a religious thing where God is mystically away in some desolate land. He’s real. He is tangible, and he desires a relationship with you – for your good and for his glory. He desires to create a beautiful tapestry out of your life. Cry out to him whether life is good or bad.
Let’s keep reading to see God’s tapestry, his plan.
Genesis 21:17-19 (NLT)
17 But God heard the boy crying, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven, “Hagar, what’s wrong? Do not be afraid! God has heard the boy crying as he lies there.
18 Go to him and comfort him, for I will make a great nation from his descendants.”
19 Then God opened Hagar’s eyes, and she saw a well full of water. She quickly filled her water container and gave the boy a drink.
As the thoughts settled in Hagar’s mind that this was where she and her boy would die, God called to her from Heaven. She heard God’s voice like a cool refreshing wind in the heat of the desert day that was about to take her son’s life. She clung to God with the little strength she had left as God promised that he would make a great nation out of Ishmael. Then God opened her eyes and informed Hagar of the well of water, the well of salvation that was near to them. So, she then quickly ran to it.
It’s no different here this morning. Let God open your eyes, cry out to him, and he will come into your life. He will weave the threads together of your life as you quickly run to him.
Let’s read the final verses of this section.
Genesis 21:20-21 (NLT)
20 And God was with the boy as he grew up in the wilderness. He became a skillful archer,
21 and he settled in the wilderness of Paran. His mother arranged for him to marry a woman from the land of Egypt.
God was with Abraham, and God was with the son of the promise, Isaac. And God was with Ishmael. God was and will continue to weave everything together!
Ecclesiastes 3:11 (NLT)
11 Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end.
God is at work in your life. The fact that you are here this morning proves it. God desires to weave all of your mistakes and all of your ups and downs into the beautiful tapestry of your life that is centered, rooted, and built upon Jesus Christ from the minute that you choose to accept him as your Lord and Savior until eternity.
Hagar would have died if she didn’t run to the well of salvation. Ismael would have died if he hadn’t accepted the water.
Let me read from Ephesians.
Ephesians 2:10 (NLT)
10 For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.
You, me, us – we are God’s masterpiece. The God who is infinitely in control, who holds power, who holds our lives in the palm of his hand, who flung every star into its place – that God who is all-powerful desires you and says that you are his masterpiece. That is incredible. It’s crazy to comprehend that throughout the insecurities, the insufficiencies, the mistakes, the broken vessels that we are; God says that we are his masterpiece. The Greek word for masterpiece is POIEMA which means “workmanship, masterpiece.” A work of art, like a poem. That’s who God says you are.
Can you trust that God is at work in your life – for your good? Can you trust that he is weaving a beautiful tapestry out of the tangled mess you’ve made of your life?
Trust God today. Put the tangled threads of your life in his hands and trust him to be at work in all things weaving your life together into a tapestry of his making.