The God Who Sees

This morning we turn to one of the most overlooked stories in all of Genesis — the story of Hagar. She is a slave, she is a woman, she is a foreigner, and she is alone in the wilderness. Everything about her situation says she has been forgotten. But watch what God does. In Genesis 16:7 we read: the angel of the Lord found her by a spring of water in the wilderness. God found her. Not the other way around. She did not seek God — God sought her. This is the character of the God we serve. He goes after those the world has written off. He sees those the powerful have rendered invisible. When Hagar asks in wonder, she names God El Roi — You are the God who sees me. Have you ever felt unseen? Have you ever been in a place where it felt like your pain was invisible to everyone around you? This name of God — El Roi — is for you today. He sees your desert. He sees your tears. He sees you. And not only does he see — he speaks. He gives Hagar a promise and a future. The God who sees is also the God who acts.