Genesis 16

You are seen

 _{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}

 Have you ever had moments in your life when you felt completely unseen. Times when you were doing everything you knew to do like serving, giving, obeying, and still feeling invisible. Maybe you’ve been showing up day after day, faithfully laboring, loving others, carrying burdens quietly and still wondering if anyone truly notices. You give your best, but it feels like you’re invisible in the background. You’re not looking for praise; you just want to know you matter. In the middle of that ache, you may begin to wonder even if God sees what you’re walking through.

Genesis 16 introduces us to Hagar, a servant caught in a painful and complicated situation. She was used, mistreated, and then cast out. Alone in the wilderness, carrying the weight of rejection and confusion, God met her right where she was. He didn’t ignore her pain or her past. Instead, He gave her comfort, a promise for her future, and a new revelation. He is the God who sees. In her wilderness, Hagar was not invisible to God.

Maybe you’re in a similar place right now. Maybe life feels unfair, heavy, or lonely. Maybe you’re wondering if anyone notices how hard you’re trying or how much you’re carrying. Let Hagar’s story remind you: God sees you. He sees every sleepless night, every unspoken prayer, and every time you chose love when you could’ve walked away.

Here are some ways you can live in the truth that God sees you:

• Write out what you’re carrying. Be honest with God in a journal or during your quiet time. He already knows, but there’s healing in pouring it out before Him.

• Sit with the Word. Find scriptures that remind you of His nearness. Psalm 139, Isaiah 43, and Matthew 6 are powerful reminders that God is intimately involved in your life.

• Ask God for a personal reminder. Just like Hagar had an encounter in the desert, ask the Lord to speak to you in a personal way that confirms His eyes are on you.

• Encourage someone else. Sometimes the quickest way to feel seen is to help someone else feel the same. A word of encouragement or a small act of kindness can open a floodgate of connection.

• Rest in His presence. You don’t have to strive to be seen by God. Just be with Him. Worship, pray, or sit in silence and let Him love you.

Today I want to encourage you to take heart in the truth that you are never out of God’s sight. He sees the details no one else does. He knows your motives, your struggles, and your deepest desires. Even in the wilderness, especially there, He comes close. Like Hagar, you can encounter Him in your hardest place and walk away with the confidence that you are fully seen and deeply loved.

Today’s Scripture Reading: Genesis 16

1 Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had not been able to bear children for him. But she had an Egyptian servant named Hagar.

2 So Sarai said to Abram, “The Lord has prevented me from having children. Go and sleep with my servant. Perhaps I can have children through her.” And Abram agreed with Sarai’s proposal.

3 So Sarai, Abram’s wife, took Hagar the Egyptian servant and gave her to Abram as a wife. (This happened ten years after Abram had settled in the land of Canaan.)

4 So Abram had sexual relations with Hagar, and she became pregnant. But when Hagar knew she was pregnant, she began to treat her mistress, Sarai, with contempt.

5 Then Sarai said to Abram, “This is all your fault! I put my servant into your arms, but now that she’s pregnant she treats me with contempt. The Lord will show who’s wrong—you or me!”

6 Abram replied, “Look, she is your servant, so deal with her as you see fit.” Then Sarai treated Hagar so harshly that she finally ran away.

7 The angel of the Lord found Hagar beside a spring of water in the wilderness, along the road to Shur.

8 The angel said to her, “Hagar, Sarai’s servant, where have you come from, and where are you going?”

“I’m running away from my mistress, Sarai,” she replied.

9 The angel of the Lord said to her, “Return to your mistress, and submit to her authority.”

10 Then he added, “I will give you more descendants than you can count.”

11 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.

12 This son of yours will be a wild man, as untamed as a wild donkey! He will raise his fist against everyone, and everyone will be against him. Yes, he will live in open hostility against all his relatives.”

13 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?”

14 So that well was named Beer-lahai-roi (which means “well of the Living One who sees me”). It can still be found between Kadesh and Bered.

15 So Hagar gave Abram a son, and Abram named him Ishmael. 16Abram was eighty-six years old when Ishmael was born.

Journal:

• Where in your life do you feel unseen or forgotten?
• Write a letter to God sharing that place and asking Him to meet you there.
• List three ways God has shown up for you in the past when you felt alone.