Isaac is the son promised to Abraham by God, and was born to Abraham in his old age. Thus there was great rejoicing when Isaac was weaned and grew to be a strong and healthy boy. All were happy except for Sarah who saw Ishmael (out of envy) mocking Isaac (Gen 21:9). Ishmael envied Isaac as Isaac was the chosen one, not him. She was worried that Ishmael would harm Isaac. Hence, she wanted Abraham to cast out Hagar and Ishmael (Gen 21:10). This made Abraham very grievous because Ishmael was his own son (Gen 21:11). However, this is the consequence which Abraham had to bear because he failed to seek God’s will and “went in unto Hagar and she conceived” (Gen 16:4).

God intervened and reminded Abraham to hearken unto Sarah because Isaac is the chosen seed (Gen 21:12). God promised Abraham that He will make a nation out of Ishmael because Ishmael is Abraham’s son (Gen 21:13). Sarah knew that Ishmael would be a threat to Isaac, and thus a hindrance unto God’s will. She was right to ask Abraham to remove this hindrance. Abraham had to put away his own feelings and not let his love for Ishmael hinder God’s will and plan for salvation. He obeyed God and immediately sent Ishmael and Hagar away the next morning with only bread and a bottle of water (Gen 21:14), trusting that God will keep His promise and take care of Ishmael and Hagar. God did take care of them by providing them with “a well of water” (Gen 21:19), and Ishmael grew as he dwelt in the wilderness of Paran and took a wife from the land Egypt (Gen 21:20-21).

In our lives, there may be many hindrances which may prevent us from obeying God and doing His will. Examples:

1. Lying, not speaking forth the truth.

2. Pride, preventing us from admitting our mistakes or apologizing, making us very unforgiving towards others which is not the will of God.

3. Covetousness, causing us to go after the things of the world and making us unfruitful for God.

We must be prepared to remove these hindrances, seeking God faithfully and approaching Him for help. We need to know God in order to know what His will is for us. Like Abraham, we must have the faith to trust God, and not let any hindrances thwart our obedience of God. Pray for God’s strength to help us remove any hindrances that will cause us to go against God’s will. May God help us.