The Power of Desperation
Sarah, Abraham’s wife, found herself in a desperate situation. Throughout her child bearing age, she had never conceived and she had lived without a child to call her own for the longest time possible. Just like any other married woman, she needed a child desperately. I believe that her desperation got into her head and it affected her sense of security and status in the society based on the fact that barrenness was a major issue during her time. Sons in particular were needed to carry on the family name and livelihood, and she had none. God had already promised Abraham a son, but Sarah got tired of waiting and finally concluded that God was preventing her from bearing children. This led her to come up with a scheme that was purely humane and fleshly.
And Sarai said to Abram, “Behold now, the LORD has prevented me from bearing children. Go in to my servant; it may be that I shall obtain children by her.” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai ~ Genesis 16:2 ESV
She successfully persuaded her husband to father a child by her housemaid, thanks to her desperation. Abraham listened to her and did what she suggested. But as soon as Hagar conceived, she knew that she had made a grave mistake. Hagar suddenly changed and began to despise her. Abraham did not do much to solve the issue, but let Sarah deal with Hagar her own way, and she did.
But Abram said to Sarai, “Behold, your servant is in your power; do to her as you please.” Then Sarai dealt harshly with her, and she fled from her~ Genesis 16:6 ESV
Who has never found herself or himself in a desperate situation? I believe all of us have. Desperation, if not handled with discernment, understanding and godly wisdom, can lead many to destruction. It has the power to release negative or positive energy into our lives. There are many today who are regretting their decisions because they made them out of desperation. Lives have been lost, destinies have been delayed and aborted, money has been lost, and many are walking in disappointments, hurt, pain and unnecessary suffering simply because they made desperate decisions that were contrary to the will of God for their lives and situations. There are many who have sold their precious souls to the devil out of desperation for money, fame and power. Many marriages and relationships are in trouble today also because they were entered into out of desperation.
The negative power of desperation has led many to the wrong paths, even death. There are many who have made bad decisions out of desperation and are now living with the consequences. I have found that one of the greatest catalysts of negative energy when one is faced with a desperate situation is impatience.
There are times God closes our ways for His own purposes and sometimes we are led to think that we have done something bad or that we are being punished for some sin we committed and maybe never confessed. Sometimes God chooses to withhold blessings from us for His own plans and purposes, like in the case of Sarah for example. At such times we may do anything and everything we can to get ourselves out of that mess that we did not create in the first place. However, things become unbearable and hard. We lose focus, become frustrated and discouraged and begin to doubt God and every single promise He has made to us. Our solutions can neither last nor solve anything. We need to discern the will of God for us because if He pushes us to the corner, He will be the one to get us out of there. As we try to solve our issues, we end up hurting ourselves, and Sarah’s case was no different. I believe it’s wise to just take a step back and assess a situation before it becomes an obsession that will consume us and lead us down the wrong road.
The negative energy of desperation is extremely dangerous because it is self-centered. It’s all about Me, Myself and I; what I want, what I must have, what I cannot live without. Jesus tells us to forget ourselves and focus on Him; a life given over to Him (Matthew 16:25). It doesn’t mean giving up all your dreams and becoming miserable; it means that when you give up all your desires and everything you think you need to become happy, full and satisfied in this life, and are determined to have just Him, then you will truly find a life that’s worth living.
Then [with a deep longing] you will seek Me and require Me [as a vital necessity] and [you will] find Me when you search for Me with all your heart ~ Jeremiah 29:13 AMP
Hannah was a desperate woman. She badly needed a child. Peninnah had refused to leave her alone and she kept mocking and ridiculing her. The pressure was becoming too much for her and no matter what her husband Elkanah did to make her happy, it wasn’t working. Hannah kept on praying and believing God for the fruit of the womb, but it seemed God was taking longer than expected. The longer it took, the more desperate she became and one day, she couldn’t bear it anymore. Her desperation took her to the altar at Shiloh and it is here where everything changed. This is the same place where she and her husband went for worship, but this time round, Hannah decided to do things differently.
After they had eaten and drunk in Shiloh, Hannah rose. Now Eli the priest was sitting on the seat beside the doorpost of the temple of the LORD. She was deeply distressed and prayed to the LORD and wept bitterly. And she vowed a vow and said, “O LORD of hosts, if you will indeed look on the affliction of your servant and remember me and not forget your servant, but will give to your servant a son, then I will give him to the LORD all the days of his life, and no razor shall touch his head.”~ 1 Samuel 1:9-11 ESV
This was no ordinary prayer; it was made from a desperate heart and God honored and answered her prayer. This is a perfect example of positive energy that is triggered by desperation. There are times in your walk with God when you will find yourself between a rock and a hard place and it’s in such times when your faith in God will be truly tested. The issue, I believe, is not about what you are going through, but about where your heart really is. These are some of the things that will clearly expose the condition of your heart. God sometimes pushes us to the wall and places us in situations where only He can get us out of. His aim is to shape our lives in the areas of frustrations, dissatisfaction and even failure, which more often than not leads us to desperation. If we are discerning enough, then we should make the best use of the opportunity we have because out of such desperate situations, can come life-changing experiences.
