Key Scripture – “She [Hagar] gave this name to the LORD who spoke to her: “So she called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, “You are a God of seeing,” for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me.” That is why the well was called Beer Lahai Roi [the”well of the Living One who sees me”] (Genesis 16:13-14).

An Egyptian slave named, Hagar, encountered God in the desert and called Him, El Roi, “the God who sees me.”

“The angel of the LORD found Hagar near a spring in the desert; it was the spring that is beside the road to Shur. And he said,”Hagar, servant of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?”

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

Then the angel of the LORD told her,”Go back to your mistress and submit to her.”

The angel added,”I will so increase your descendants that they will be too numerous to count.”. . .

She gave this name to the LORD who spoke to her:”You are a God of seeing,” for she said,”I have now seen the One who sees me.”(Genesis 16:7-13)

Hagar was pregnant, alone, impoverished, scared, and she was in the desert, yet Hagar discovered she wasn’t alone. God, El Roi, had seen her predicament with perfect clarity. He knew what she had suffered in the past, He pinpointed her exact position in the present, and He saw what the future held for her—a son named Ishmael, with descendants too numerous to count. Hagar and her child would live and not die.

No wonder she was willing to return to Abraham’s household as the angel of the Lord instructed her to do. No wonder she called God, El Roi, and then exclaimed, “I have now seen the One who sees me.”

El Roi, a God so watchful that Jesus told us that He knows when even the smallest sparrow falls to the ground. “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father” (Matthew 10:29)

This is the God who watches over you today, whether you recognize His presence or not. He is aware that you may sometimes find yourself in desolate dry places, but He is always near, helping you find a path through all your troubles, and working out His plans for your future. “The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.” (Psalm 121:8).

Like Hagar, El Roi, “the God who sees me,” sees you and is ready to encounter you in your desert. You need to call out to Him, He is right there with You. “The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous and his ears toward their cry.” (Psalm 34:15).

So if you think you can hide from God or that He doesn’t see what other people are doing to you, you are wrong. If you think nobody’s watching you need to know God is always watching you. He is also watching what people are trying to do to you. He sees them plotting against you at the office or when people lie about you and slander you. So you don’t need to run around frantically trying to find out what people said about you or what they are trying to do to you, because God’s got it all under control, He is El Roi, He sees it all so don’t delay another minute, go before God today and cry out to Him and say, “Our Father in Heaven, Hallowed be Your Name, You are El Roi, it is so comforting to me that You see it all, You are always watching, and You will protect me.”

Pray this – Our Precious Heavenly Father, Hallowed be Your Name, You are the One who numbers the hairs on my head and who knows my circumstances, past, present, and future. (Matthew 10:30-31). I know how much You love me and that You are watching me all the time because You are, El Roi, the One who sees me and who knows everything about me and what people are trying to do to me. I thank You for Your watchful care. Forgive me for the times I have panicked and let fear and doubt creep into my mind. Father, I know that You see the beginning from the end and You have everything under control, so I am going to let You handle it, I am going to give it all to You, and just rest in Your strength, love, and protection while I wait patiently for You. In Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen.