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?" (Genesis 16:13, NLT)

Hagar really didn't have much going for her in life. An Egyptian slave in the household of Abraham and Sarah, she was far from her homeland. But her life became even more confusing and difficult when her master's wife suggested she become a surrogate mother to provide them with an heir. God had promised them a child, but Sarah remained barren. This seemed a good solution, at least to Sarah.

What Sarah had earlier thought a good plan soon created sharp discord between the two women. Hagar fled - pregnant, alone, and not knowing who could help her. We can only imagine the panic and uncertainty she must have felt.

in the wilderness

Then she had a divine experience. It was by a spring in the wilderness that Hagar encountered the angel of the LORD. Calling her by name, He gave Hagar instructions and then a promise.

And the angel of the LORD said to her, "Behold, you are pregnant and shall bear a son. You shall call his name Ishmael, because the LORD has listened to your affliction." (Genesis 16:11, ESV)

While Hagar felt unseen and unloved, God saw her distress and confusion. Although Hagar felt she had no one to listen to her agony, God heard the cry of her heart.

Hagar was told to name her son Ishmael, which means "God hears." Each time Hagar spoke her son's name became a reminder of the day the God not only saw her but also listened to the cry of her heart. God rescued her from a wilderness place. He called her by name. He recognized her loneliness, her pain, her despair. Is it any wonder that she called God "the One who sees me"?

god sees you

I don't know what wilderness place you may be in today, but God knows where you are. He sees your situation. He understands your heartache, your pain, your loneliness. He knows how you long for someone to really see you - to listen and to care. When you face a seemingly impossible situation, do not despair. God is with you.

God knows your name; God sees your heart. You can trust Him to be with you in every circumstance of life.

Hagar called the Lord "the One who sees me." What does God mean to you today?

Be encouraged by the words of Psalm 139:1-6 (ESV).

O LORD, you have searched me and known me!

You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar.

You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways.

Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O LORD, you know it altogether.

You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand upon me.

Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high; I cannot attain it.

Devotion by Mary Loudermilk