I Am Not a Side Story
- caroline borishade
- May 23
- 2 min read
Some of us end up in places we never planned to be.
That’s the story of Hagar. She wasn’t the decision maker, she was caught up in someone else’s plan. As Sarah’s servant, she had little say in her role in Abraham’s story. When Sarah grew impatient waiting for God’s promise, she acted independently, and Hagar was given to Abraham. What happened next wasn’t her choice; it was an obligation.
Many can relate to that feeling. Sometimes, we are pulled into things by the decisions of others. Other times, it’s our own flesh that drives us. We give in to fear, impatience, or control. Either way, we end up in situations where we feel powerless, misused, or out of place.
That’s where Hagar found herself: pregnant, mistreated, and fleeing into the wilderness. She ran, not just from Sarah, but from a life that had made her feel unseen and unheard.
But the wilderness became holy ground.
“The angel of the Lord found Hagar near a spring in the desert.”
Genesis 16:7
God found her. He called her by name. And for the first time in the story, someone asked her how she was, “Where have you come from, and where are you going?”
In that moment, Hagar encountered something she had never experienced before: being seen.
She gave God a name:
El Roi – “The God who sees me.”
(Genesis 16:13)
Not because her situation instantly changed, but because her perspective did. God gave her presence, identity, and purpose in the middle of her pain.
You are not a side story.
Hagar was never just a servant.
Never a mistake.
Never forgotten.
And neither are we.
In God’s story, no one is in the background.
You are seen. You are known. You matter.
Prayer
Lord, open our eyes to see You, the One who sees us.
Remind us that we are not forgotten, not overlooked, and never a side story in Your hands.
Meet us in the wilderness, speak to our hearts, and restore our sense of worth in You.
In Jesus' name, Amen.
Written by: Caroline
Founder, Rise & Reclaim,
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