Thereafter, Hagar used another name to refer to the LORD, who had spoken to her.
She said, “You are the God who sees me.”
Genesis 16:13 (NLT)
Hagar was frightened. She was hurting. She was confused. Alone, in the hot, dry desert, without help, without hope, without answers to her dire circumstances, Hagar faced a very bleak future. I can’t imagine what she felt, what she endured, all because she obeyed her mistress who then turned on her. It wasn’t her fault Sarai couldn’t get pregnant. It wasn’t her choice to sleep with Abram. It wasn’t her plan to carry a child for someone else.
Yet, it became her problem when Abram refused to deal with the conflict between his wife and his wife’s servant. It became her dilemma when she was mistreated by her mistress because she was able to conceive. It turned into her crisis when she fled into the desert. Alone and afraid, Hagar sank down beside a well to rest.
That’s when God showed up. In the midst of her sorrow, without anything to her name but the clothes on her back, without any resources to pull her through, God came and offered comfort. Not only would she be a mother, but she would have more descendants than she could count. How’s that for a complete turnaround?
Problem turned into promise. Woe became wonder. In one fell swoop, her future went from bleak to blessed. Because God heard. Because He saw. Because He cared. Hagar, the one whom Sarai scorned and mistreated, was touched by the Almighty God. In her joy, she called Him the God who sees me. Her insight into God’s character was radically changed through her personal encounter with Him during the darkest time of her life.
God is not indifferent to those He loves. On the contrary, He is a personal God. He calls Himself our heavenly Father, our Abba, the One who hears our cries, who feels our pain, sees our tears, the One who deeply cares about each and every struggle-filled day.
Are you wandering through the desert right now? Don’t give up hope. The same God who saw Hagar sees you. He hears your prayers. He sees your tears. He will never abandon you because He loves you far too much to let you wander through the desert alone.
Thought: “God can make the very worst things that ever happened in your life to work for your very best, if you have faith.” – Zac Poonen
For further reading:
- Psalm 11:4
- Psalm 34:15
- Psalm 56:8
- Psalm 139:3
Excerpt from my devotional, A Year in God’s Classroom