Taking Pictures...Helping Them "See"

I LOVE taking pictures. I am the crazy mom on the sideline of the football field that has her zoom lens attached to her camera and has her finger perpetually pushed down on the "sports mode"setting button so as not to miss a single moment of play. My average number of photos per game looms somewhere around 300 (yes I am serious). It doesn't have to be a football game though...if my daughter's cheer leading squad is performing I take just as many pictures, or if there is a pep rally at school, or if the orchestra is playing at the mall...you get the idea. By the way...not all 300 of these pictures are of the "fruit of my womb" (then we'd have a real problem and I would definitely need some sort of an intervention). I take pictures of all the kids...each and every one performing or playing. Close ups, action shots, moments between father and son on the field or between a coach and a player or even those priceless moments between friends. I capture them, I edit them, I upload them and I share them. Parents often thank me for the time and energy I put into taking pictures of the kids and some even ask me why I do it especially since I'm not getting paid. I've thought about this often and the best answer I can come up with is that I want these kids to know that "they are seen." I want each of these kids to know that someone not only notices them but that someone cares about them, is proud of them and loves them. I don't want them to ever feel "missed," "forgotten" or "invisible."

As I was spending some time in the Bible this week I came upon the story of Hagar and Sarai (found in Genesis 16:1-16) and in it I was reminded of the impact that feeling "seen" has on a person. If you are familiar with the story you'll recall that Hagar, Sarai's maidservant becomes pregnant with Abraham's child (Sarai's husband) which causes tension (to say the least) to arise between the women and for Sarai to begin to mistreat Hagar. This sends Hagar fleeing to the desert where Hagar is met by an "angel of the Lord." This supernatural encounter causes Hagar to realize that she has never been "missed" by God. God not only "saw" her but pursued her. This realization was so wondrous to Hagar that it reads "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) In Hebrew, El Roi is the name Hagar spoke of God. It translates as "the God who sees."

I take a lot of pictures...some may say too many...but one of my hopes in capturing all these moments is that these kids might someday know that it wasn't only one crazy mom on the sideline of the football field that "saw" them but it is the God of the Universe who not only "sees" them but relentlessly pursues them with His love.

Here is a shot I took at one of the last games. In it my son and one of his dearest friends (along with every member of both teams and the coaching staff) and teammates have gathered in the middle of the football field following a close game to prayerfully give thanks to El Roi-The God Who Sees.

Let's Pray...
El Roi, we thank you that you never miss a thing and that you certainly never miss us. Thank you for being a God that pursues us relentless with love, grace, truth and forgiveness. Please help me communicate this aspect of your character to my own children and to all of the children of God that you place in my path. In Jesus' Name, Amen.