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El Roi


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)
You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways.(Psalm 139:2-3)
 
          El Roi is one of God's names. It was given him by an Egyptian slave girl on the run from her mistress. She was out of resources and out of ideas. She was well past the "Hang in there, Baby. Friday's coming" and the "tying a knot at the end of her rope" stages. Then God showed up and this is the name she gave Him. Clearly, seeing doesn't refer to mere stimulation of the optic nerve. It has to do with awareness, and more. She had God's attention.
          The passage from Psalm 139 is one of my favorites. Again, it points out that God is aware. He notices. I've written before that in my imagination, God is doing His god-stuff - maybe taking reports from the angels - when he holds up a finger and looks away from the angels and said, "Wait a sec, Karen's thinking. I want to listen in." It means so much more than that I'm just another ewe in His innumerable herd, interchangeable with all the others.
          I don't know if you'll find awareness or consciousness in most lists of the attributes of God. It might be considered part of God's personhood, or part of His omniscience.  It could even be part of His being love. I don't know if it is something about God that you need to discover or remember, but it is something I need to remember every day.
 

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