1. Pastor Randy's first sermon slide stated "Abram being shaped into a man of faith".  Isn't it encouraging to know that "Father Abraham" was not always a man of great faith?  God had to do a work in him.  What has God done or is currently doing in your life that has shaped you into a person of faith?  Where does your faith still need to grow?

2. Pastor Randy spoke of the "brutal honesty of God" and pointed out that God has provided us "the good, the bad, and the ugly of Abram's life" in His honest accounts in the Bible.  Reflect on the Bible's transparency in regards to the brokenness of the individual stories included in the annals of scripture.  How does this encourage you in your Christian walk as a broken, sinful human being?  Does the openness of scripture affect the way that you view our gracious God?

3. Genesis 16:1 "Now Sarai, Abram's wife, had borne him no children.  And she had an Egyptian maidservant whose name was Hagar."
Verse 1 of chapter 16 gives us evidence of one of the potential consequences of Abram's actions in Egypt.  Hagar was an Egyptian maidservant that Abram probably received during his time in Egypt as noted in Genesis 12:16.  Abram left Egypt with his wife Sarai and even greater possessions than he went there with but he did not get away unscathed.  When is a time that you thought you might have "gotten away with" sin but God still allowed negative consequences?

4.  Genesis 16:2 "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."  Two phrases are striking in this verse.  Sarai says "...it may be..." and "Abram listened to the voice of Sarai".  Sarai didn't get her idea from the Lord and Abram didn't listen to the Lord, he listened to his wife.  How should Sarai and Abram have both approached this situation differently?  When have you fallen into the trap of self dependence in trying to resolve an issue?

5. Pastor Randy rightly stated that "men have to take the lead in leading our homes spiritually".  Men, how can you be a better spiritual leader in your home?  Women, how can you be a better follower to your spouse's spiritual leadership

6. Pastor Randy went on to say that "Adam and Abram both rejected their responsibility of spiritual leadership and allowed their wives to lead them into sin."  What parallels can you draw between Genesis 3:1-6 and Genesis 16:1-4?  What could Adam and Abram have done differently to avoid falling into sin?

7. Read Genesis 16:3-4. What is your Hagar?  How are you doing things within your own power and strength?  What can you do to change that?

8. Read Genesis 16:5-6.  Contempt is mentioned in verses 4 & 5.  What are some other "Fruits of the Flesh"?  How are they displayed here?

9. In Genesis 16:7, the angel of the Lord found Hagar "in the wilderness".  Hagar was probably fleeing back to Egypt.  How do we often flee back to the familiar in times of hurt and/or difficulty?  Was God's plan for Hagar to flee?  

10. In Genesis 16:7-11, the "angel of the Lord" is mentioned 4 times.  This is the first appearance in the Bible of the "angel of the Lord".  Who is this "angel of the Lord"?  What evidences are there in this passage that the "angel of the Lord" is our Lord Jesus Christ?

11. Genesis 16:13 states that Hagar named the Lord "You are a God of seeing" because she said, "Truly here I have seen him who looks after me."  When has God seen you when nobody else seemed to?  When have you been able to say about God that he is the one "who looks after me"?  Thank God for seeing us and looking after us.