The remarkable Old Testament story of Sarah’s servant Hagar is one worth revisiting. Difficulties in the home prompted Abraham, Sarah’s husband, to send Hagar and her son away into the wilderness with only a bottle of water and some bread. It’s not hard to imagine that Hagar must have felt abandoned and concerned about how to feed her child (see Genesis 21:9–21).
When the bottle of water was empty, she moved away from her son, because she did not want to see him die. But even in the midst of that absolute despair, this mother came to understand that the boy had a direct relationship to God. An angel—a divine message—told her, “God hath heard the voice of the lad where he is.” Hagar and the child were then saved. The Bible reports, “And God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water; and she went, and filled the bottle with water, and gave the lad drink.”
The angel message had ordered Hagar to “lift up” the boy. Seen through Christian Science, the angel message was telling Hagar to lift up her thought of the boy and to behold the source of his life: God, divine Life, the only Life. She had to see that his life could not be lost. The most remarkable thing to me about this story is that the much-needed water was already there. Hagar’s despair had prevented her from seeing that the solution had always been within her reach. A lesson for us today is that God’s answer is always near.
There’s a story that has been in my family for some generations. It tells of a relative about a century ago who had been left alone with her youngest children while her husband and two eldest went to war. Soon, she no longer had anything to feed her children. In despair, she went out to the fields with them, perhaps in search of something that would ease their hunger. When she found nothing, she went toward a nearby mountain, leaned against one of the trees, and began to cry, while trying not to let her children see her tears. She then pleaded with God to help her in this time of great need. She had barely finished her plea, when she felt something fall at her feet from the branches. She leaned down and right there in front of her was a gold doubloon among the greenery. She would be able to purchase food with that valuable coin. What wonderful joy and gratitude she must have felt overflowing in her heart!
God’s answer is always near.
This story may have several explanations, but the most reasonable is this: There was an abundance of crows in that region, and some believe these birds to be attracted to shiny objects, and to take them to their nests; we think the coin must have fallen out of the nest of one of these birds.
If we find ourselves blinded by fear, it is not easy to be aware of the immediacy of the divine response. But as this story shows, despite the difficulties we may be experiencing, God’s presence is tangible right where we are and meets our needs.
This reminds me of a Bible verse that I love: “And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear” (Isaiah 65:24). Just as with Hagar, it’s impossible to be aware of the availability of good when we are blinded by anguish and despair. Other times, we may want our need to be met in a certain way, and when it appears in a way we don’t expect, we think that we have been denied aid.
On more than one occasion I have felt very close to both Hagar and the woman in the doubloon story. There have been times when the desperation to get something I really needed has led me to ask God for it with all my heart, even in tears.
On some occasions, when my financial situation was very difficult, I would find money that had been forgotten in the pocket of some clothing or in a purse, which covered the need of the moment. One time, my husband and I were kept awake for several nights, because we urgently needed to find new housing. When we prayed and affirmed that the love of God, our Father-Mother, would not allow His beloved children to be left helpless, we found our answer. Within a few days we were led to a beautiful home with the necessary amenities to lodge our family.
As stated in Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, written by Mary Baker Eddy, the Discoverer of Christian Science, “Divine Love always has met and always will meet every human need” (p. 494). Through my study of this Science, I have come to understand that God meets everyone’s needs; exactly as evidenced by the stories of Hagar and the woman who found the gold doubloon. In reality, God’s spiritual and complete creation does not lack anything.
The woman who found the coin petitioned a God that she didn’t really know, but that she intuitively knew would answer her. That God, I have learned, is supreme good, the God that Christian Science urges us to know and love. How wonderful it is to know that divine Love is infinite! It spans the ages, supplies all needs, and reaches the heart that sincerely seeks an answer in God.
