Three Steps Hagar Took in Overcoming Her Wound

1 – She Told the Truth

The angel of the Lord found Hagar near a spring in the desert and he said, “Hagar, slave of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?”

“I’m running away from my mistress Sarai,” she answered.” (Gen 16: 7-8)

One good first step toward healing is coming to an honest place within yourself. Far too often we shove feelings aside and push emotions into dark hidden places. I was shocked when I read how transparent Hagar was with the angel. What would you have said? Would you have minimized the situation? Made up a story? Told half-truths? Healing comes when we get honest with ourselves and God. Healing starts when we begin to see our wounded situation as transparent as we can and verbally express it to God.

2 – She Listened

 Then the angel of the Lord told her, “Go back to your mistress and submit to her.” The angel added, “I will increase your descendants so much that they will be too numerous to count.” The angel of the Lord also said to her: “You are now pregnant and you will give birth to a son.
You shall name him Ishmael, for the Lord has heard of your misery.

As the angel spoke, Hagar listened. She didn’t rise up and go on her way in a puff of angry smoke. No one knows Hagar’s thoughts or what went through her mind as she listened. Perhaps she allowed the angel to talk and then she would decide what to do. Sometimes, in the midst of our most heated moments, our anger crowds out anything God might be trying to tell us. Anger is simply hurt turned inward. We know Hagar was angry because she stomped out into the desert to get away from Sarah. But when the Lord moved toward her (by sending an angel) she paused and she listened. What do you do during those moments? How do you respond? Could God get your attention even if He tried? Step two in overcoming your wound, after you have verbally expressed it, is lending your ear to God and giving Him the floor.  

3 – She Saw

“You are the God who sees me,” for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me.”

Because Hagar was willing to spill the truth and give God her attention, it allowed her heart to soften. If our eyes and ears are closed could anything penetrate them if we didn’t want it to? We must be willing to open our eyes to see the truth, open our ears to hear the truth, and open our hearts to receive the truth. That moment of honesty with the angel allowed something magical to take place in Hagar’s heart – she saw God – and perhaps for the very first time.  Not only did she see God, but she came to understand something very important – GOD SAW HER. And if God saw her – it meant He also saw her wound. The third step toward healing your wounded heart is coming to a realization that God sees YOU and the wound you carry.

Those simple three steps can take you father in your healing than you ever imagined. And you guessed it - Hagar returned to Sarah and God blessed Hagar with a son she named Ishmael.

Tip: One way we hear from God is through prayer and by digging into His Word.