Read: 2 Corinthians 4:7-18
We look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. (v. 18)
When the blind woman in the corner of the soup kitchen asked to speak to the visiting pastor, he assumed she wanted something from him. He had spent all day supervising his youth group in serving hungry guests, and he was tired. He wondered what he could possibly offer her. But it turned out she had something for him. The blind woman prayed a prayer for the pastor that he would remember for years afterward as one that deeply blessed him.
In the kingdom of God, things are not always as they seem. When we look at a person’s wealth or social status or outward appearance, we often miss the depths that lie tucked away inside their hearts. Perhaps this is one thing the apostle Paul means when he encourages us to “look . . . to the things that are unseen” (v. 18). It’s hard to notice something invisible. But when we spend time with Jesus—when we allow Jesus to teach us what it means that our inner self is being renewed even as our outer self is wasting away—then we can learn to recognize glimpses of the eternal.
The world tells us people are only as good as they appear. We spend so much energy trying to make ourselves look like we have it all together. But Jesus is writing a deeper story in our hearts. Will you ask God to reveal to you how he is present in the lives of those around you?
As you pray, ask God to show you what is important to him.
Sarah Sanderson is the author of The Place We Make: Breaking the Legacy of Legalized Hate. She lives with her husband and their four teenage children in Oregon.
