September 5, 2025
Does this current season feel like a walk through the valley of shadows?
Do you feel forsaken? Are you feeling unseen?
You might be asking, “Could anything good and fruitful come from this dark, lonely space in time?”
Unfortunately, as we travel this broken earth, we will all find ourselves on a dim, fretful pathway at one time or another. There are seasons to life. I would hope that you might be experiencing a glimmer of sunshine, and soon you might walk right out into the sunlight and green meadows. I hope soon you will experience a renewed vision and purpose for your life.
Whether you’ve been there recently or you are currently here in the darkness, grief is deeply personal. It manifests in our daily living in ways that are as unique as our personalities. Suffering through loss, while attempting to continue life ‘as usual’ can be overwhelming and messy. But here’s what I have gleaned from personal experience, and believe in my very core to be true; God will not allow your sadness and loss to be wasted.
In God’s economy all things are recyclable. Nothing is wasted. Not pain. Not sickness nor devastation. Not grief or sorrow or tears. God will take your ashes, and with them design something beautiful and worthwhile.
As I pray this morning, I see a room in complete darkness. Black. Thick. Heaviness. The only reason I know it’s a room is the spot of light shining against a brick wall and concrete floor.
The light focused on a person sitting bent on the floor. He is hunched against the wall – crumpled by the sadness of feeling alone. His head hangs low with the heaviness of his heart.
This visual reminds me of a Scripture tender to my own heart. It’s the story of Hagar found in the Old Testament book of Genesis. I hope you will read the whole of her story for yourself, but here’s a snippet for understanding.
“The angel of the Lord found Hagar near a spring in the desert; it was the spring that is beside the road to Shur.”
Genesis 16:7 NIV
God saw Hagar hiding in the wilderness. She was running away in the dark of night. Hagar was pregnant (not of her own choosing) and without shelter. In her valley of pain, the Angel of the Lord found her …Genesis 16:7
“And He said, “Hagar, slave of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?”
Genesis 16:8
“I’m running away from my mistress Sarai,” she answered.
The Lord asks good questions, and so, she entered into conversation with Him. It was right for her to answer Him, and to listen to His directions. Evidence of the intimacy of this encounter is uncovered when Hagar cried out El Roi, which means the God who sees me.
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
Hagar teaches us a valuable lesson. In the darkness God sees you. No matter where He finds you, and no matter the cause of this isolated location on your journey, God sees you. He knows your location without GPS. You don’t even have to make the first move. He’s already near.
In the prayer visual, the spot of light is created by God’s presence. He is Light. He illuminates all that hides. Nothing is hidden from His sight.
God sees you.
Let’s leave it to the psalmist , the writer of Psalm 139, to clarify up our pondering thoughts.
“Lord, you know everything there is to know about me. You perceive every movement of my heart and soul, and you understand my every thought before it even enters my mind.
You are so intimately aware of me, Lord. You read my heart like an open book and you know all the words I’m about to speak before I even start a sentence! You know every step I will take before my journey even begins.
You’ve gone into my future to prepare the way, and in kindness you follow behind me to spare me from the harm of my past. You have laid your hand on me! This is just too wonderful, deep, and incomprehensible! Your understanding of me brings me wonder and strength.
Where could I go from your Spirit? Where could I run and hide from your face? If I go up to heaven, you’re there!
If I go down to the realm of the dead, you’re there too! If I fly with wings into the shining dawn, you’re there! If I fly into the radiant sunset, you’re there waiting!
Wherever I go, your hand will guide me; your strength will empower me. It’s impossible to disappear from you or to ask the darkness to hide me, for your presence is everywhere, bringing light into my night.
There is no such thing as darkness with you. The night, to you, is as bright as the day; there’s no difference between the two.
You formed my innermost being, shaping my delicate inside and my intricate outside, and wove them all together in my mother’s womb. I thank you, God, for making me so mysteriously complex!
Everything you do is marvelously breathtaking. It simply amazes me to think about it! How thoroughly you know me, Lord! You even formed every bone in my body when you created me in the secret place; carefully, skillfully you shaped me from nothing to something.
You saw who you created me to be before I became me! Before I’d ever seen the light of day, the number of days you planned for me were already recorded in your book. Every single moment you are thinking of me!
How precious and wonderful to consider that you cherish me constantly in your every thought! O God, your desires toward me are more than the grains of sand on every shore! When I awake each morning, you’re still with me.”
Psalms 139:1-18 TPT
What would you like to say to El Roi, the God who sees you?
Eyes on Jesus and Shine,
Lisa
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