Do You See The Lonely?
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
Being invisible is one of the loneliest things we could ever experience. When no one sees us, we appear worthless, unimportant, unnecessary. That can destroy a person’s soul.
How hard it must have been for Hagar. She was a servant girl, given by her mistress to that woman’s husband so that she would have children for the mistress. It wasn’t uncommon in those days. But, oh, what heartbreak!
So she ran away. She was tired of being treated badly. Can you relate to that? I sure can. But God sent an angel to speak with her, to send her back, to promise that life would not always be so.
God didn’t call her to something easy. Submitting to a woman who treats you badly isn’t easy. Being treated as property -- which women and servants were in early Biblical times -- is demeaning. And yet she went back. Because God saw her, recognized her pain, and cared for her.
We don’t know anyone like that. Or do we? Do we see the people around us? Do we recognize the hurting, the lost, the alone? Are you sure? Are you really, really sure?
A childhood friend contacted me a while back. She moved away long ago but her mother still lives in our hometown. She mentioned how depressed the older woman had been. She goes to church (a different church from the one I attend) but she feels so alone. With all her family having moved away, she has no one to sit with during worship service. Oh, she’s surrounded by people. It’s a large church. But there’s no one that knows her name and seeks her out. She is just another face in a sea of faces.
This dear woman told my friend that if she suddenly stopped attending church she was certain no one would notice. Even in her Sunday school class, she’s just another body. That is so very sad.
Our church has a program that reaches out to people just like that. The only struggle is locating all who need a friendly face, and sometimes a helping hand, amidst all our attendees. We don’t want anyone to fall through the cracks. But it’s hard to locate the invisible.
That’s where people like you and me come in. God puts us in contact with people who need a friendly face, a kind word, a place to belong. But we have to do our part. We have to open our eyes to see them. And then we have to reach out as Jesus would do and show them kindness and compassion, friendship and God’s love.
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