Hagar of the Bible called him “El Roi.” The God who sees. How very personal He is. Almighty, all-knowing, He sees me. God who spoke the sun, hung the moon, placed all the planets in orbit and keeps it all going, sees me. Can I fully take that in? God of thunder, power and raging seas, sees me. He saw me before my heart and brain were formed, just a collection of a few tiny cells. Saw me the day my eyelashes formed and every day since.

It’s not a passive seeing, not a detached observation. El Roi didn’t simply watch Hagar suffer: homeless, pregnant, with nowhere to go for help. She had been used and abused, and she was running from the pain. He found her by a well in the desert. (You can read the story in Genesis 16.) She was thirsty, and He found her and spoke to her. He gave her hope and a promise and tells her not to give up. Hagar saw the God who sees her, and it changed her destiny.

I found the girl in the yellow dress by a well in Mumbai, India. She wasn’t destitute like Hagar. As a matter of fact, she was smiling. Smiling as she washed dishes with clean water. Before the well was drilled, the closest water was half a mile away, and it wasn’t clean water. I was smiling as I considered what clean water means in a community like that. It means that water-borne disease is eradicated. It also means that girls like her no longer have to spend most of their day carrying water. Girls like her can go to school instead of carrying water. The God who sees had seen the girl in the yellow dress, and He gave her water. Will she see the God who sees her? I pray it is so. It will change her destiny.

Hagar obeyed the Lord and went back to her mistress Sarai. Fast forward 16 or 17 years, Hagar finds herself in the middle of a complicated blended family. (Click here to read Genesis 21.)There is fighting among sons that she can’t control, a mistress who hates her, a master/husband who can’t commit to her. Then she is kicked out and abandoned.

Hagar again finds herself thirsty in the desert, this time with her teenage son at her side. Again El Roi shows up, this time because he hears the sobbing cry of the boy. Blinded by pain and worry, at first Hagar doesn’t see. El Roi finds her, gives her hope and a promise, and tells her not to give up. Then He opens her eyes to see the well of His provision. Hagar saw because El Roi opened her eyes, and this time her son saw as well. God provided, mother and son lived, and Ishmael became a nation.

Having seen before, how many times do I forget how to see? I see Him in the blooming of spring and mountain peaks. I see Him in the music of laughter and the joy of love. I see Him in dark chocolate and my little black poodle. I see Him in answered prayer and in the words that He speaks to me: strength, wisdom, hope.

I see Him in the sunlight, but do I see Him in the shadows? Like Hagar, do I get blinded by pain and worry and forget how to see? Do I see Him when I am used, abused, or rejected? Do I see Him when I can’t see the provision? He sees me, but do I see Him? I pray it is so.

As I’m looking for Him, can I see the ones that He sees? I saw the girl in the yellow dress. She is forever etched in my mind. But can I see the ones who aren’t yet smiling? Can I see the dirty faces, remember the stench of their reality and not turn away because it’s so heavy? Can I see the dark eyes of the thirsty, those who literally thirst for safe drinking water, and those whose souls thirst for living water? Can I see the ones who will die without this water? By myself, I can’t see them. Though I have seen, I so easily forget. I get blinded. But He sees them, He sees me, and He opens my eyes. In seeing them, I find the One who sees me.

International World Water Day is on Tuesday, March 22. The United Nations established an annual World Water Day “as a means of focusing attention on the importance of freshwater and advocating for the sustainable management of freshwater resources.” Tomorrow you and I will drink filtered water from our fridge, our tap, or bottled water that we buy by the case. We can drink carbonated water, flavored water, even imported water. On World Water Day, it will be appropriate for us to celebrate and give thanks that we have clean water in abundance.

Billions of people—yes, that’s illions with a capital “B”—don’t have access to clean water. While we can’t comprehend what a billion people looks like, we can respond to the people we see. I’ve met some of them in the slums of Mumbai. Their need is raw, real. El Roi sees them, and I believe He is nudging us, saying, “Open your eyes and see them. Then you will see more of me.” He is waiting to open their eyes to the well of His provision.

Sower of Seeds Ministries has been active in India since the year 2000. To date, we have drilled over 300 wells for communities that are desperate for clean water. Will you participate in World Water Day with me by helping to provide a well? Together we can change a destiny. You can visit our website to find out more about how you can be a part: Sower of Seeds Organization

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Pam Mueller

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