The God who sees me

Have you ever felt overlooked… forgotten… like nobody really sees what you’re carrying?

In this episode of Chic in the Spirit, we’re talking about The God Who Sees You.

Not the version of you people applaud…
 Not the strong you that shows up for everybody else…
 But the you that cries in silence, carries pain you didn’t create, and feels stuck in situations you never asked for.

We’re walking through the story of Hagar in Genesis 16—a woman who was used, mistreated, and pushed into a wilderness she didn’t choose… yet still encountered God in a deeply personal way. She calls Him El Roi—“The God Who Sees Me.”

This episode is a reminder that:
 God sees you in the middle of your mess… not just after you clean it up.
 He sees you when you’re tired, confused, and trying to hold it together.
 And even when people overlook you… God never does.

If you’ve been in a wilderness season, this is for you.

🎧 Streaming on all platforms: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Amazon Music
 💌 Want to share your thoughts or testimony? Email: chicinthespiritpodcast@gmail.com

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:01

Welcome to Chick in the Spirit, where faith meets flair and style meets scripture. I'm your host, Shreita Mache. Get ready for real talk, spiritual growth, and a whole lot of grace. Let's get into it. Hey y'all, and welcome back to another episode of Chick in the Spirit. I'm your host, Shreda Mache, and I'm so grateful that you decided to press play today. I don't believe you're here by accident. I believe God has a way of allowing us to hear certain words at the exact time our spirit needs them. So today we're talking about the God who sees me. And I want you to really sit with that before we even get deep into the episode. Not the God who just knows your name, not the God who just sees what you post, not the God who only sees when you're strong, smiling, serving, and showing up. But the God who sees the quiet tears, the God who sees the silent battles, the God who sees the places where you feel rejected, overlooked, mistreated, mishandled, or forgotten. Today we're going to look at the story of Hagar in Genesis chapter 16. Because Hagar gives God a name that is so personal and so powerful, she calls him Elroy, meaning the God who sees me. And I believe somebody listening today needs to be reminded that even when people overlook you, God does not. God, we thank you for this moment. We thank you for this space. We thank you for every person listening right now. Father, I pray that this episode will not just be information but revelation. I pray that whoever is listening will not only hear words, but they would hear your voice speaking directly to the places in them that feel unseen. God, meet us in the hidden places. Meet us in the wilderness places. Meet us in the places where we have felt rejected, abandoned, confused, or forgotten. Father, I ask that you open our hearts to receive your truth. Let this word bring healing. Let this word bring clarity. Let this word bring comfort. And most of all, let this word remind us that we are not invisible to you. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Now I want to take us to Genesis chapter sixteen verse thirteen. It says 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. Now let's slow that down. This is Hagar speaking. Hagar was not in a palace. She was not in a peaceful season. She was not surrounded by support. She was not in a moment where everything was working out perfectly. She was in the wilderness. She was alone, she was pregnant, she was hurting. She had been mistreated, and it is in that place that God meets her. To really understand the weight of Genesis chapter sixteen verse thirteen, we have to understand what was happening before Hagar said this. Hagar was an Egyptian servant to Sarah, who later became Sarah. Abram and Sarah had been given a promise by God, but the promise had not happened yet. God had told Abram that he would have descendants, but Sarah was still barren, and because the promise was taking longer than expected, Sarah decided to take matters into her own hands. She gave Hagar to Abram so that Hagar could have a child for them. Now, we have to be honest about this text. Hagar did not have the power in this story. She was not the one making the decisions. She was a servant, she was placed in a situation created by somebody else's impatience. And that right there is already powerful because sometimes we find ourselves dealing with pain that came from other people's choices. Sometimes we are carrying consequences from situations we did not create. Sometimes we are hurt because somebody else moved ahead of God. Sarah became impatient. Abram went along with this plan. And Hagar ended up caught in the middle. That is why this story matters, because Hagar represents the person who got wounded in somebody else's process. She represents the person who was used, then blamed. She represents the person who was placed in a hard situation and then treated like she was the problem. And some of us know what that feels like. You did not create the whole mess, but somehow you ended up carrying the weight of it. You did not ask to be hurt, but somehow you had to heal from it. You did not ask to be overlooked, but somehow you had to survive it. Hagar became pregnant, and tension begins to grow between her and Sarah. The Bible tells us that Sarah dealt harshly with Hagar, and Hagar ran away. Now I want to pause here. Hagar ran and before we judge her, we need to understand that sometimes people run because they are tired. Sometimes people leave because they are broken. Sometimes people distance themselves because they do not know how much more pain they can take. Hagar was not just being dramatic. She was overwhelmed, she was mistreated, she was pregnant and vulnerable, and she found herself in the wilderness. But this is where the story shifts, because the wilderness becomes the place where God speaks. And this is important. Because one of the biggest things we need to understand is that the wilderness is not always punishment. Sometimes the wilderness is the place where God gets your attention. Sometimes the wilderness is the place where God removes the noise. Sometimes the wilderness is where God shows you who He is in a way you could not learn when everything was comfortable. Hagar encountered God in the wilderness, not in a perfect environment, not in a church service, not when everything was fixed, but in the middle of pain. And that tells us something about God. God does not wait until you are cleaned up to come near. God does not wait until your emotions are perfect to speak. God does not wait until your situation makes sense to show himself faithful. He met Hagar while she was running. He met her while she was hurting. He met her while she was confused. And that is good news for us, because some of us think God only wants to meet us when we are strong. But God also meets us when we are tired. God also meets us when we are crying. God also meets us when we are unsure. God also meets us when we are sitting in a situation we never thought we would be in. And let me say this is one of the deepest parts of the scripture. Hagar says I have now seen the one who sees me. That means God was already seeing her before she had the language to recognize him. God saw her before she could name what was happening. God saw her before she could explain her pain. God saw her before she knew what the next step was. And that is powerful because sometimes we think God starts paying attention when we start praying perfectly. But God sees before we even have the words. Psalms chapter one hundred thirty nine says You have searched me, Lord, and you know me. That means God is not guessing about you. He knows you. He knows what you are carrying. He knows what you are hiding. He knows what you are tired of pretending about. He knows the difference between the smile on your face and the heaviness in your heart. And that should comfort us. Because being seen by God means being fully known and still fully loved. People may see pieces of you and misunderstand you. People may see one mistake and label you. People may see one season and define you. But God sees the whole story. He sees the wound behind the reaction. He sees the pain behind the silence. He sees the fear behind the hesitation. He sees the exhaustion behind the strength, and he does not look away. Now, this is where we have to be mature in the word. Because when God sees Hagar, he does not immediately remove every hard thing from her life. And that can be difficult for us. Because sometimes we think God, if you see me, why am I still here? God, if you see me, why has this not changed yet? God, if you see me, why am I still waiting? God, if you see me, why do I still feel pain? But the fact that God sees you does not always mean the situation changes immediately. Sometimes the first thing God changes is your awareness. He lets you know you are not alone. He lets you know I have not forgotten you. He lets you know your story is not over. Hagar's circumstances were complicated, but God gave her a promise. He spoke to her future while she was still standing in the wilderness. That is important, because God will sometimes give you a word before he changes the environment. He will speak identity before he changes location. He will give promise before he gives relief. And that requires faith, because it takes faith to believe God sees you when nothing around you has shifted yet. It takes faith to believe God is working when you are still waiting. It takes faith to believe you are not forgotten when people have treated you like you are disposable. Now let's bring this home. Where do you feel unseen? Maybe you feel unseen in your family. Maybe you are the one everybody leans on, but nobody checks on. Maybe you are the strong one, so people assume you do not need support. Maybe you are the one who prays for everybody else, encourages everybody else, shows up for everybody else, but when you are hurting, people barely notice. Maybe you feel unseen in your marriage. Maybe you feel unseen in your friendships. Maybe you feel unseen in your calling. Maybe you feel like you are doing good work, but nobody recognizes it. Maybe you feel like you are growing, healing, changing, and obeying God, but it feels hidden. Let me encourage you. Hidden does not mean forgotten. Quiet does not mean insignificant. Unseen by people does not mean unseen by God. Some of the most important work God does in us happens in hidden seasons. Before David was king, he was in the field. Before Joseph was elevated, he was in the pit and in prison. Before Moses led people out, he spent years in the wilderness. Before Jesus began public ministry, he was in hidden preparation. So do not despise the hidden place. God sees you there. God is forming you there. God is strengthening you there. God is teaching you there. One of the things Hagar's story teaches us is the difference between being validated by people and being seen by God. Human validation feels good, but it is not always stable. People can celebrate you one minute and dismiss you the next. People can love what you do for them, but still not value who you are. People can benefit from your presence and still mishandle your heart. But God's attention is different. When God sees you, he sees you with purpose. He sees you with compassion. He sees you with truth. He sees you without confusion. And sometimes God has to heal us from needing people to confirm what He already knows. Because if we are not careful, we will spend our whole life trying to be seen by people who were never assigned to affirm us. Hagar was not honored properly by the people around her, but heaven still knew her name. That right there is enough to shout about, because it means mistreatment does not erase your value. Rejection does not erase your purpose. Being overlooked does not cancel what God placed inside of you. And when you look at Psalm chapter thirty four verse eighteen, it says The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. That scripture shows us that God is not intimidated by brokenness. He is close to it. He does not distance himself from the hurting. He draws near. So when your heart is broken, God is not far. When your spirit feels crushed, God is not absent. When you are trying to hold yourself together, God is close. And that matters because pain can lie to us. Pain will tell you nobody cares. Pain will tell you God forgot. Pain will tell you your prayers are not working. Pain will tell you that you are alone. But Scripture tells us something different. Scripture says God is close to the brokenhearted. So even when your feelings say I am by myself, the word says God is near. I want to give you a few reflection questions because I do not want this episode to just be something you listen to and move on from. I want you to sit with it. Number one, where in my life do I currently feel unseen? Number two, have I been measuring my worth by who noticed me, who chose me, or who affirmed me? Number three, what pain have I been carrying that God is asking me to bring honestly before Him? Number four Do I believe God sees me even when people overlook me? And number five, what would change in my life if I truly live like I was seen, known, and loved by God? Before we close, I want to speak directly to the person who feels like Hagar. You may feel pushed aside, you may feel like life has been unfair, you may feel like people used you, misunderstood you, or left you to deal with the pain by yourself. But God sees you. He sees the part of the story nobody else knows. He sees what it costs you to keep going. He sees the nights you cried and still woke up the next morning. He sees how many times you wanted to quit but did not. He sees how much you have poured out. He sees how tired you are, and he is not just watching from a distance. He is present, he is near, he is personal, he is Elroy, the God who sees you. And when God sees you, your story is not over. When God sees you, your pain is not wasted. When God sees you, your wilderness is not the end. God met Hagar in the wilderness, and he can meet you right where you are too. God, I thank you for being Elroy, the God who sees. I thank you that you are not distant. I thank you that you are not blind in our pain. I thank you that you see every listener right now. Father, for the ones who feel overlooked, remind them that they are seen. For the ones who feel rejected, remind them that they are loved. For the one who feels forgotten, remind them that they are still held by you. God, heal the places in us that have been wounded by people who did not see us correctly. Heal the places where rejection made us question our work. Heal the places where silence made us feel abandoned. Teach us to rest in the truth that your eyes are on us. Teach us to stop chasing validation from people when we already have your attention. And God, help us believe that even in the wilderness you are still speaking. Even in the hard place, you are still present. Even in the unseen place, you are still working. We love you, we honor you, and we thank you for seeing us fully and loving us completely. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Alright, y'all, if this episode blessed you, do not just hear it, sit with it. Ask yourself this week, where have I felt unseen? And how is God revealing Himself to me there? Make sure you are subscribed to Chicken the Spirit so you never miss an episode. New episodes now drop every Monday and Wednesday. And if this episode encouraged you, share it with somebody who needs to be reminded that God sees them too. And listen, if you ever want to write in, share what you're going through, or just connect, you can email me at Chick in the Spirit Podcast at gmail.com. I would truly love to hear from you. I love y'all and I'll see y'all next episode. Thanks for tuning in to Chick in the Spirit. Don't forget to subscribe, share this with a friend, and follow me at Sharita Mache. Until next time, keep it cute, keep it covered in prayer, and keep it Chick in the Spirit.