There are seasons in ministry and in life when we feel unseen. Not just unnoticed in passing, but overlooked in ways that cut deep. You show up, you serve, you carry burdens quietly, and yet decisions are made without you, tensions go unspoken, and your voice seems to vanish into the background.

Being unseen can feel like being unvalued. Over time, it wears on the soul.

But Scripture offers a steadying truth: We are seen by the God who sees.

Hagar, mistreated and alone in the wilderness, gave God a name no one else had: El Roi the God who sees me (Genesis 16:13). She wasn’t in a palace or a pulpit. She was a servant, a runaway, pregnant and hurting. Yet God saw her. He spoke to her. He called her by name.

When others overlook us, God does not. When leadership feels distant or cold, God is close. When our contributions go unnoticed, He keeps the record. Not for reward, but because that is who He is, the Shepherd who never loses track of a single sheep.

This does not always change our circumstances. But it can change our hearts. When we stop striving to be seen by people, we can rest in being known by God. And from that place, we can keep showing up, keep loving, keep serving, not for applause, but out of faithfulness.

If you’re in a season where your voice feels silenced or your presence seems to go unnoticed, take heart: You are seen. Not vaguely or generally, but specifically and tenderly by the One who matters most.

And in the quiet strength of that truth, you can keep going.

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