‘You are the God who sees me.” Genesis 16:13
Please read Genesis chapter 16.
Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. But she had an Egyptian slave named Hagar; so she said to Abram, “The Lord has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my slave; perhaps I can build a family through her.”
Abram agreed to what Sarai said. So after Abram had been living in Canaan ten years, Sarai his wife took her Egyptian slave Hagar and gave her to her husband to be his wife. He slept with Hagar, and she conceived.
When she knew she was pregnant, she began to despise her mistress. Then Sarai said to Abram, “You are responsible for the wrong I am suffering. I put my slave in your arms, and now that she knows she is pregnant, she despises me. May the Lord judge between you and me.”
“Your slave is in your hands,” Abram said. “Do with her whatever you think best.” Then Sarai mistreated Hagar; so she fled from her.
The angel of the Lord found Hagar near a spring in the desert; it was the spring that is beside the road to Shur. And he said, “Hagar, slave of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?”“I’m running away from my mistress Sarai,” she answered.Then the angel of the Lord told her, “Go back to your mistress and submit to her.” 1The angel added, “I will increase your descendants so much that they will be too numerous to count.”
The angel of the Lord also said to her:
“You are now pregnant and you will give birth to a son. You shall name him Ishmael, for the Lord has heard of your misery. He will be a wild donkey of a man; his hand will be against everyone and everyone’s hand against him, and he will live in hostility toward all his brothers.”
She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me,” for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me.” That is why the well was called Beer Lahai Roi; it is still there, between Kadesh and Bered.
So Hagar bore Abram a son, and Abram gave the name Ishmael to the son she had borne. Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore him Ishmael.
No one asked Hagar her opinion. Did she want to marry Abraham? Did she want to bear a child and then hand him over to her master? Did she want to see another woman raise her child, be given orders on how to care for her very own child, a child she was forced to bear?
Is it any wonder that Hagar ran to the desert, that dry, barren place, for a dry, barren soul?
She was a woman, in a time when women knew no appreciation for their own thoughts.
She was a slave, a time when she would never anticipate knowing independence.
She was accustomed to remaining unseen.
Accustomed to being overlooked.
Accustomed to trying to stay in the shadows.
Accustomed to not capturing attention.
Yet Someone did see her. Someone, unbeknownst to her, did love her. And, Someone, remembered her.
And like a knight in shining armor, He came riding in to save her. He sent an angel. An angel! One of His heavenly servants, to console, instruct, and to water this dry, barren soul. He sent her reassurance. She did not go unnoticed. And yes, she did indeed know freedom from spiritual slavery.
God saw her.
And that made all the difference.
That one realization gave her the confidence, the gumption, and the desire, to go back to the life she knew. But she would return, knowing God knew, and He saw, and He had her.
Reflections:
Monday: Can I saw to myself with confidence, ‘God sees me’?
Tuesday: Name a painful situation you are facing. Talk to God openly about it. Then, listen to His prompting.
Wednesday: Reflect on the promise of Romans 8:28. How did God redeem Hagar?
Thursday: Reflecting on Romans 8:28, how has God redeemed painful; situation in your life?
Friday: Thank God for His promises and his healing hand in how He has healed, and is healing your hurtful situations.
Maybe, you are waiting to see how He will redeem something. Pray for patience as He works it all out. If you would like prayer, please feel free to email me at Stefanielynn3@gmail.com Anything sent directly to my email will be kept confidential. Or, if you feel comfortable, feel free to post it here.
Thank you so much for reading. Please return by Monday, Oct 28 for the next post.