She gave this name to the LORD who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me,” for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me.” – Genesis 16:13

Today’s Scripture Reading (March 5, 2012): Genesis 16

I am a little attention deficit. It shows up in various ways For instance, my T.V. is on quite a bit in my house. But to be honest, I don’t really watch it much. It is on, but I am hard at work on my latest project on my computer, or playing a game. It acts like a diversion allowing me to actually concentrate on what it is that I need to do. One of the things that people often don’t understand is that I need the diversion so that I can concentrate. When you ask me to sit down and give something my undivided attention, often you are dooming me to failure. I need the diversion.

My problem shows up the most in my one on one interaction with other people. Often these are the times when I really have trouble concentrating, and a time when it is most inappropriate for me to be working on computer – unless there is something that I absolutely need to get done. So I have developed some practices to help me – and most of them have to do with seeing the person that I am with.

In communication, I know the importance of seeing. Really seeing helps me to concentrate on the person– but it also is what the people I am talking to really need to know. I see you and I understand where it is that you are coming from. Even in a crowded room, it is important for people to know that I see them, and important for me to know that they see me.

And of all the names that we have for God, I think this might be one of the more important ones. God is El Roi - he is the God who sees. It is not that he is the Big Brother, watching me to catch me when I mess up, but he is the God that sees me and understands me. He knows the things that concern me. He knows where it is that I need his help, even before I ask for it.

And this is Hagar’s name for God. When everything in her world seemed to be going wrong, she was able to take comfort in the fact that God was the God who saw her – and the God who knew exactly what it was the she needed.

God has not turned a blind eye toward his creation. He is not a God that ignores us. He sees us. And because he sees us, he is in a position to act on our behalf, just as he did for Hagar.

 Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Genesis 17