Genesis 21:10–16 (KJV)

[10] Wherefore she said unto Abraham, Cast out this bondwoman and her son: for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac.

[11] And the thing was very grievous in Abraham’s sight because of his son.

[12] And God said unto Abraham, Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman; in all that Sarah hath said unto thee, hearken unto her voice; for in Isaac shall thy seed be called.

[13] And also of the son of the bondwoman will I make a nation, because he is thy seed.

[14] And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and took bread and a bottle of water, and gave it unto Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, and the child, and sent her away. And she departed and wandered in the wilderness of Beer-sheba.

[15] And the water was spent in the bottle, and she cast the child under one of the shrubs.

[16] And she went and sat herself down over against him a good way off, as it were a bowshot: for she said, Let me not see the death of the child. And she sat over against him, and lifted up her voice, and wept.

Child of God, you need to understand, and understand very early in life, that no matter how much you have, no matter how powerful your relationships are, no matter who your parents are, and no matter who your relatives are, you can only go far in life and destiny if you remain dependent on God.

There are many people who have encountered strategic people in their lives, and because of that, they rise up in foolishness and say, “I do not need God anymore.”

When we look at the story of Abraham and Ishmael, there are two things that are very clear.

Firstly, the Bible says that Abraham was a rich man. The Bible records that Abraham was rich in gold, rich in silver, and rich in livestock.

Genesis 13:2 (KJV):

“And Abram was very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold.”

In Bible days, there was nothing like paper currency. The wealth of men was measured by the value of the livestock, silver, and gold they possessed. Very early in Abraham’s life, the Bible records that, by the standards of his time, he was a very rich man.

Secondly, we see in the Bible that Abraham genuinely loved Ishmael. In fact, when Sarah wanted him to send Ishmael away, God had to convince Abraham because of how much he loved his son.

But does it not surprise you that Abraham, who loved his son so much and wanted to settle him, could not give him gold, could not give him silver, and could not give him livestock? The only things Abraham could give his beloved son were bread and water—and even that water was not enough.

Child of God, every Sunday you come to church, you hear the Word. You have heard us preach from the pulpit that you should trust God, depend on God, and rely on God. You have heard us say things like, “God is the Source, and man is a resource.” You may have even shouted, “Preach it!” “Ride on!” “Powerful revelation!”

But ask yourself, if you had a wealthy father who wanted to send you away and all he gave you was a loaf of bread and a bottle of water, would you not forget all the teachings on faith and ask your mother to conduct a DNA test immediately?

Some of you would even abandon this Christianity you practice on Sundays and fight man-to-man for your inheritance.

Have you not seen children kill their parents over inheritance? In fact, the Bible tells us about the prodigal son who could not wait for his father to die; he demanded his inheritance while his father was still alive.

The natural thing Ishmael would have done was to protest. Even if he could not confront his father himself, he could have sent his mother to plead his case, and Hagar might even have extended the dispute to Sarah. That would have been the natural response.

However, in this Kingdom, we do not do what is natural; we do what is godly.

So Hagar and Ishmael departed with what they had been given, and eventually they found themselves in the wilderness.

Now understand this: when they first arrived in the wilderness, they did not immediately need God because they still had water. In fact, because water is scarce in the wilderness, people ration it carefully. But there comes a time when even your savings can no longer save you.

We often say, “What you save today will save you tomorrow,” but that depends on how long that “tomorrow” lasts.

There also came a time when the little flour the widow of Zarephath had was about to finish (1 Kings 17:12). Hagar and Ishmael must have rationed that water until there was absolutely nothing left.

Child of God, many times this is how God tests us. He allows you to run out of the savings you have depended on. He allows your contingency fund to dry up. He allows you to exhaust every option until you finally decide to return to Him.

The reason many of us are not yet taking God seriously is because we still have savings, we still have people we can call for help, and we still have resources to lean on. When God truly wants to teach you dependence, He may allow the only thing left in your life to be Himself.

So there they were in the wilderness. They had no water. They were dehydrated. Yet, according to the flesh, they still had an option.

Sometimes, as students in the university, when we have spent almost all our money and know that by the next day we will be broke, we quickly begin making advance calls. We ask how our parents are doing and begin laying the groundwork so that when we ask for money, they will be more willing to send it.

Hagar had that same option. They were not foolish. As the water supply diminished, they could naturally have decided to return to Abraham for more.

You see, in the flesh, when our water runs out, we return to the person who gave us the first bottle.

But because we are people of the Spirit, when our water runs out, the answer is not to go back to Abraham—it is to run to God.

There are times we encounter problems, and the first thing we do is pick up our phones to call everyone we know. What we often fail to realize is that even the person we are calling is also seeking God’s help.

There is no need going to Abraham when I can cry unto the God of Abraham.

There is no need going back to my father when I can cry unto the God of my father.

There is no need crying out to men when I can speak to the God who raises men.

You do not serve a weak God.

You do not serve an incapacitated God.

He is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

The Bible says that even the heart of a king is in His hand.

That is the God you serve.

When your water finishes, that is when you begin to exercise faith.

You remind yourself that Abraham is not the Source—Jehovah Jireh is.

He is our Provider!

My charge for you today is simple: Understand that God is your Source, and determine in your heart to rely on Him.

Good morning, and God bless you.