“The One who sees me.”
Have you ever had one of those days?
A day when you overslept, woke up to a sick pet that now needs to be cleaned up. A day when you spilled coffee on your outfit, but you have already left for work. A day when you realized the deadline was tomorrow at three, not next Thursday at three.
Trivial incidents throw us off and leave us feeling alone because no one else saw our struggle.
What about those days and weeks of chemo? The days and weeks after the divorce? The days and weeks after being let go from your job?
Isolated moments, from incidental to intense, can leave us feeling like an island while everyone else’s perfect life cruises by. We long to be known and to be seen.
The Old Testament tells of a woman’s isolated experience that left her feeling alone in her misery, misunderstood, and unimportant.
The angel of the Lord found Hagar beside a spring of water in the wilderness, along the road to Shur.
And the angel also said, “You are now pregnant and will give birth to a son. You are to name him Ishmael (which means ‘God hears’), for the Lord has heard your cry of distress.
Thereafter, Hagar used another name to refer to the Lord, who had spoken to her. She said, “You are the God who sees me.” She also said, “Have I truly seen the One who sees me? So that well was named Beer-lahai-roi (which means “well of the Living One who sees me”). ” (Genesis 16:7, 11, 13-14, NLT)
When we are seen for who we are, and our situation is understood, we feel comfort beyond our comprehension. Hagar was so overwhelmed that the Living God took notice of her. She gave God the name El Roi, the God who sees me.
God sees us like a good parent who desires to engage with their children at every level, with interest and delight. He never forces Himself, but invites us to an identity that reflects being seen.
The God Who Sees Me
God not only heard Hagar’s cries of distress but also saw her and the child in her womb.
God’s ability to truly see us transcends an earthly understanding of perceiving. When God sees us, He sees our situation and the things we cannot see. His sight goes beyond our past and present and into the future. God sees who we are becoming.
God’s name, Jehovah Jireh, The Lord Who Provides, has His ability to see us at divine levels built into the name. The Hebrew word “raah,” from which “jireh” is derived, means to see.
God chooses us, and He sees us.
When God chose Gideon, the least of the least, God saw a mighty warrior. (Judges 6-8)
When God chose Mary Magdelene, a demon-possessed woman, God saw the first proclaimer of the good news of our risen Lord. (Luke 8, Mark 16)
When God chose Saul, the prosecutor and killer of Christians, He saw Paul, a missionary to the Gentiles. (Acts 9, Ephesians 3)
When God chose you, lost in a world-imposed identity, God sees who you can be and will be through Christ. (Colossians 1, Ephesians 2)
Who are you – really?
You are God’s masterpiece who heals you, forgives you, and loves you into your potential.
I pray the love of Jesus washes over your soul today. That you sense the warmth of His gaze upon you. May you know in the depth of your being how deeply known, heard, and seen you are by your heavenly Father. So be it, in Jesus’ name.
Meditate: God sees me.
Reflect: Can you remember a time when you didn’t feel heard or seen by someone? How did that feel? Can you remember a time when you felt heard and seen by someone? How did that feel? How can knowing God hears you and sees you speak to your identity? What are the places in your life where you currently need God to see you? Ask Him what He wants you to know about those places and show you where He is.
Deeper: (As you read through these additional verses, ask the Spirit to give you wisdom, and teach you more about how He sees you.). Psalm 121; Psalm 139 (mark every phrase that would indicate that God sees you); Luke 15
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(Bible References: NLT – New Living Translation)
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