The God Who Sees Us

“And God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water; and she went, and filled the bottle with water, and gave the lad drink.” Genesis 21:19.

This week our subject will be: “Encounters at the Well.” There are many stories in the Bible that centre around a well. Shall we look and see what the Lord might be wanting to teach us from them.

The story in Genesis 21 is a familiar one. Abraham had purchased Hagar in Egypt to be a maid to his wife, Sarah. Her name means “forsaken.” Hagar has long represented the plight of the foreigner, the slave, and the sexually abused woman. As a slave she had no rights and was expected to obey her mistress completely. When Sarah became impatient in waiting for God to fulfill His promise of a child, she gave Hagar to Abraham and from this union Ishmael was born. This changed the relationship between Hagar and Sarah.

After Isaac was born, the situation became much worse, and Abraham sent Hagar away into the wilderness with her son. But God had not forsaken her, and when she was at the end of her rope, God spoke to her and directed her to a well of water to meet their needs. The well was there all the time, she just hadn’t seen it.

From Hagar’s encounter at the well, we learn that God sees us, knows us, and cares about us. God is faithful even if the rest of the world abandons us. God hears the cry of an anguished soul. God’s grace is sufficient. No matter what we are going through, He has a plan, and He will provide our every need.

Is there someone reading this today, who feels that you have been abandoned, that everything is going against you? You feel that life has not treated you well and that there is no hope. Sister, God is still the same today as He was back then, and He sees where you are and what you are going through. Take some time to read the whole story of Hagar. Reach out to the Lord in faith today and let Him comfort and strengthen you and give you hope.

Prayer: Thank you, Lord Jesus, that you care for the downtrodden, and the forsaken, and you arm is still outstretched to save.

Devotion by Anne Johnston