Word to the Wise
Thursday, June 26, 2025 - Thursday in the 12th Week in Ordinary Time
[Gen 16:1-12, 15-16 or 16:6b-12, 15-16 and Matt 7:21-29]"Hagar, maid of Sarai, where have you come from and where are you going?" [Genesis]
These words are from the longer version of today's first scripture. The question is a profound one. Hagar tried to run away from Abraham's wife, Sarah, who was abusing her. The "Lord's messenger" found her and asked that question. It's one that could be asked in a number of circumstances, particularly in spiritual direction or counseling. Running away from a problem can simply make one's situation worse. Neither Hagar nor Ishmael, the son she was bearing, would have been able to survive in the wilderness.
On retreats, I have often urged retreatants to do a history of prayer, learning, relationships and service in their lives. How did they get to where they are today? Healthcare providers know the value of "taking a history" of a patient's health and not simply treating a symptom. The same is true in spiritual direction. Having served in campus ministry for many years, I know that a student can be overwhelmed by a particular situation in time management or relationships. Asking the right questions about how he or she arrived at the impasse can help to develop a way forward.
Hagar's options were not happy ones, but one of them would ultimately lead to a vindication of God's promise to her about Ishmael's posterity. (Arab peoples trace their origin to him!). God can and does often send a "messenger:" to ask that important question: "Where have you come from and where are you going?" AMEN