Beloved, when everything seems to be up in the air, life is often overwhelming. Sometimes, it is our financial situation that keeps us awake at night. Maybe, one is struggling to raise children. Or a marriage is in serious trouble. Maybe, tragedy or illness is affecting you or loved one.
Abram and Sarai in Genesis 16 are promised a child, yet both are getting older, and Sarai is barren. She goes to Abram and suggests that her handmaid Hagar have a child for her. Sarai gives Hagar to Abram, and she becomes pregnant. Then, heartache and drama begin– straight out of a romance novel. Sarai complains to Abram. Basically, Abram (his name has not been changed yet) tells Sarai to figure it out.
Sarai and Hagar make each other miserable to the point that Hagar runs away to the desert. We are finally to the good part of the story.
Read with me in Genesis 16:
“The angel of the Lord found her by a spring in the wilderness, the spring on the way to Shur. 8 He said, “Hagar, slave of Sarai, where have you come from and where are you going?”
She replied, “I’m running away from my mistress Sarai.”
9 The angel of the Lord said to her, “Go back to your mistress and submit to her authority.” 10 The angel of the Lord said to her, “I will greatly multiply your offspring, and they will be too many to count.”
11 The angel of the Lord said to her, “You have conceived and will have a son. You will name him Ishmael,[d] for the Lord has heard your cry of affliction. 12 This man will be like a wild donkey. His hand will be against everyone, and everyone’s hand will be against him; he will settle near all his relatives.”
13 So she named the Lord who spoke to her: “You are El-roi,”[e] for she said, “In this place, have I actually seen the one who sees me?”
Many say the angel is a “Christophany” meaning that this is Jesus.
Hagar believed the promises for her and her son; she returns to Sarai and the safety of Abram’s household.
Dusty Road
Many weeks since I have written and much has happened. My husband has been in the hospital. My sweet friend’s husband has been in the hospital. My husband and I lost our beloved furbaby Tory! Yet in the midst of unexpectedness, God gave us a black kitten, Buddy!
In the halls of the hospital, I have prayed with several, a pastor whose courage is unmatched, worried about his church not himself. My friend’s husband, my husband, a lady with a wonderful brother and sister-in-law. Yes, all who needed to know that God sees them.
Poem
From the penned words of Karen L Clark, these words express what has been happening in our lives and the fact God sees.
In this, We Rejoice.
God works in mysterious ways
So, think on Him in all your days.
What love He Has, He wants to freely give
Abundantly, God can see all around.
Ignore the evil of heartache and pain
Look to our God, for His Love to sustain.
Call upon Him in all that you do
Patiently, He waits, to send help down to you.
In Heaven He waits, with love so divine.
It’s there, in His love, a refuge we find.
With His arms open wide
He will scoop us up inside.
We will certainly hear this voice
In this, we can rejoice!
Application
Rejoice is in the Bible 208 times.
Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your graciousness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. …Philippians 4: 4-9
Remember that we can do all things through Jesus who gives us strength.
Beloved, I covet your prayers. I continue to pray for those I meet and for those suffering from the recent flood. The God who sees is with us. El-roi is a God who cares. Please join me.
What is God asking you to do in response to this blog?
Who will you tell about “El-roi”?
Father God, El-roi, You are the God who sees us. Thank you for meeting our needs. Thank you for being with those effected by the flood in Texas and New Mexico. Father, I lift up those who are sick. Please remind us that you are the solution. In Jesus’s name. Amen
