The God Who Sees Me

My wife and I were reading Genesis 16 with our 16-year-old son Ben this week.

We were talking about Abraham, Sarah, and all the awesome covenant promises including that their posterity would be as countless as the stars in the sky.

The only problem?

They were old.  Like SO old!
And they had no children.
And the promise hadn’t happened yet.

So, like many of us often do when God’s timing doesn’t match our expectations, they called a spiritual audible...something I do way too often, myself.

Sarah suggested that Abraham have a child through Hagar, her servant. Whether it was desperation, cultural custom, or even an act of faith — the situation quickly became messy.

Hagar becomes pregnant.
Tension rises.
She flees into the wilderness — alone, afraid, and vulnerable.

And then something remarkable happens.

Genesis 16:7 says:

“And the angel of the Lord found her…”

Maybe she wasn’t searching for God.

 But God found her.

Alone in the desert, pregnant and afraid, she is seen.

Comforted.

Cared for.

Later, in verse 13, Hagar gives God a name:

“Thou God seest me.”

In Hebrew, the place this all took place is called Beer-lahai-roi —“the well of Him who lives and sees me.” (vs. 14)

Ben paused on that verse and said something simple and profound:

Hagar realized that God saw her.

Her son would be named Ishmael, which means:

God hears.

What a pairing.

God sees.
God hears.

Sometimes we worry that heaven has gone silent.

We pray and don’t hear answers.
We wait and don’t see promises fulfilled.
We wonder if God notices our wilderness seasons.

And understandably, we are tempted to step and and fix things.

But Genesis 16 reminds us:

Even when you cannot see Him…
He sees you.

Even when you cannot hear Him…
He hears you.

Even when life feels messy and uncertain…
He is near.

That’s one reason our Jesus Loves You No-Show socks mean so much to me.

No-shows aren’t necessarily designed for others to see.

They’re for the wearer.

Because sometimes we are the ones who need the reminder:

Jesus sees me.
Jesus hears me.
And yes...Jesus loves me.

And when we know that, something shifts.

Our shoulders soften.
Our confidence steadies.
Our heart opens.

And we begin to see and hear others the way God sees and hears them.

Weekly Walk Question:
Where in your life do you need to remember that God sees you - and hears you - right now?