1See what kind of love the Father has given to us in that we should be called God’s children, and that is what we are! Because the world didn’t recognize him, it doesn’t recognize us.
2 Dear friends, now we are God’s children, and it hasn’t yet appeared what we will be. We know that when he appears we will be like him because we’ll see him as he is.
Reflection
Today’s devotional is adapted from Pastor Joe’s All Saints message from November 3.
How often do you feel unseen? You give your best at home, at work, or in serving the community, yet it seems no one notices. You may begin to wonder whether what you do even matters.
The truth is, most of us long to be seen—to have our care and effort recognized. But scripture reminds us that even when the world doesn’t notice, God does.
The saints we honored in worship yesterday weren’t perfect. They weren’t famous by any human standard. They were ordinary people like you and me who kept showing up, who prayed, served, and loved in quiet ways. Their faithfulness didn’t depend on applause. It grew from the deep assurance that God saw them, knew them, and called them “beloved children.”
That same truth holds for you. You are part of God’s family. The world may overlook your kindness or your steady faith, but heaven keeps a record of every act of love. And one day, as 1 John promises, what you truly are—what all of us are becoming by loving and serving as Christ did —will be revealed in glory.
Until that day, keep showing up. Keep loving, keep serving, keep shining. What you do in hiddenness is not lost. God sees you!
by Joe Monahan
For Pondering and Prayer
Where in your life do you most need to remember that God sees and values what others might miss?
Prayer: Loving God, thank you for seeing me when I feel unseen, for noticing me even when the world does not. Strengthen me to keep loving, serving, and sharing my faith, trusting that you notice every act of grace. Amen.
