Have you ever felt forgotten?
Have you ever felt invisible or felt that no one really cared, not even God?
When attending a class or a meeting and you have a question or wish to be recognized, the usual response is to raise your hand. After raising your hand, the next step is to wait until the speaker, or the person in charge, recognizes you.
But, have you ever been in such a place and the host failed to notice you?
I can remember a few times being caught in situations with something to say but could not get recognized. Raising my hand and flailing my arm from side to side, doing my best to attract some attention, but all for naught.
Being overlooked or forgotten can be very frustrating and aggravating. It’s easy to fall into the invisibility trap — no one sees me, and no one really cares.
More than once, I’ve had similar encounters with God, asking Him for a particular answer and hearing no response.
Days go by, maybe weeks, or even months or years, and seemingly God is silent. Nothing seems to be happening to advance my cause, and I jump up and down and wave my arms in the air while shouting, “Hey God, remember me?”
It’s easy to feel forgotten when you fail to be acknowledged or recognized.
Waiting for God to respond can be one of life’s greatest challenges.
“If God hears me, why can’t I hear Him?”
“If He sees me, why won’t He respond?”
Genesis Chapter 16 relates the story of Abram and Sarai (before their names were changed to Abraham and Sarah) responding to God’s delay in fulfilling what He had previously promised. Because God had delayed fulfilling His promise, they felt it was their obligation to assist God.
God’s delay doesn’t necessarily mean He needs our assistance.
Their solution was for Abram to have relations with Hagar, their Egyptian servant girl. You may remember that Hagar ended up conceiving, and Ishmael was born. Now Sarai despised her and dealt harshly with her.
Hagar was in a foreign land with a strange culture. She was now a single mom with a child but no husband. She was driven from the only life she had known, and now she felt alone, abandoned, invisible, and forgotten with no hope.
Hagar responds to God in a most compelling way.
Then Hagar called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, “You are the God who sees me.” Genesis 16:13
In the midst of injustice and shame, God saw her, He heard her, and He understood her.
If you feel trapped, neglected, alone, unrecognized, and even forgotten on the path your life has taken, there is hope for you. Maybe you’ve jumped through every hoop you know and wildly waved your hands and arms to God, shouting, “Hey God, remember me?”
Well, don’t give up. I assure you that God has not forgotten you.
God sees you and remembers you, and He will reclaim and restore all that you have lost.
Don’t stop believing.
I know I’m . . .
Still Believing!
