A couple of weeks ago, we visited our friends on the Mountain Home Air Force Base to begin a Bible study with a few of their military friends and neighbors. I had never been on a base before and enjoyed seeing and learning more about life there from those at the study. Although joy, smiles, and laughter were shared, the evening carried a heaviness as a few of the families in attendance, including our friends Matt and Rachel, prepared for a hard goodbye and a 6-month deployment.
As I talked with people about past deployments and listened to Rachel share some of her worries about the months ahead, several of my own emotions and sadness from Luke’s deployment in 2005 flooded my mind. I remembered the anxiety that settled in my stomach days before Luke left and remained long after he was gone. I remembered how hard the days leading up to his departure had been and how heart wrenching the final goodbye. I remembered the unsettling reality that this could be a goodbye for 9 months or a last goodbye until heaven. And, I remembered the loneliness, the worry, and the growing stream of “what if’s” that ebbed and flowed throughout each day of his being gone. Deployment is crummy, there’s just no getting around that. So, when we left the base that night, I just hugged Rachel and cried with her--not knowing what words to say to bring comfort but trusting in our God, who is the King of all comfort, to sustain and care for my friend.
On the actual day of Matt’s deployment, Rachel and the kids were heavy on my heart. Since I couldn’t be there in person, I wanted to share an encouraging verse from God’s word. So, I asked for the Lord’s help in finding one. The words that came to mind were, “God sees!” I knew this was a truth in the Bible, but I didn’t know the exact story or context. So, I looked it up. The words comes from Genesis 16:13, “She (Hagar) gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: ‘You are the God who sees me,’ for she said, ‘Truly here I have seen the One who looks after me.’” You can read the full story of Hagar in Genesis 16. To summarize, at the time Hagar spoke these words, she was in the desert, knowing she may die but choosing to take the risk rather than returning to her mistress, Sarai, who was treating her harshly out of jealousy for the child Hagar had conceived. The Lord met Hagar in the wilderness and asked her to return to Abram and Sarai and to the difficult tension that no doubt awaited her. But, He also gave her hope through His promise of provision of a son and an inheritance, and He gave assurance that He was with her and would care for her.
This assurance of care and of future hope was a stronghold for Hagar, just as it has been for me and is for my friend Rachel. How wonderful to know that our God sees us in our suffering—He sees the hurt, the brokenness, the fear, and the tears—and, He does not leave us alone in it. He enters in and cares for us as He carries us through. By His suffering, death, and resurrection, He has purchased and guaranteed His promise that all those who call on Him will receive the gift of eternal life in a place without suffering, sorrow, or sin. If you are struggling through something right now and feeling alone, I pray you would let God in to comfort your soul and to give you an even greater understanding of the secure hope, provision, steadfast love, and grace that is available to you through Jesus--our God who sees.
By Katie Miller
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