Scripture
John 5:17·WEB Translation
My Father is still working, so I am working, too.
Devotional
The Work You Cannot See
Theo (who was three at the time) and I planted cress recently. We put them in soil, watered them, and he immediately asked, "Where are they?"
I explained they're under the soil, growing, but we can't see them yet. He wasn't convinced. He wanted to dig that back up to see!
But after persuading him to wait, over the next couple of days, he kept checking, expecting to see something.
"But where ARE they?" To him, if he couldn't see them, nothing was happening.
Finally, a few days later, tiny green shoots appeared. The dots began to connect for him.
They were there all along, working beneath the surface, even when he couldn't see any evidence of growth.
I laugh about his impatience with seeds, but when I think about my life, I'm not that different. I want visible progress. I want to see things moving, changing, improving.
I want evidence that God is working, answered prayers, open doors, clear direction. And when I don't see it, when things look the same day after day, I start to wonder: Is anything actually happening?
But God's most important work often happens in the invisible places.
Joseph didn't see God working during the thirteen years of slavery and prison. The Israelites didn't see God working during the four hundred years in Egypt. Mary and Martha didn't see God working during the four days Lazarus lay in the tomb.
In every case, what looked like silence was actually preparation beneath the surface.
Jesus said it plainly in John 5:17: "My Father is still working, so I am working, too."
Still working. Not finished, not paused, not waiting for a better moment. Working right now, in the exact part of your life where you can't see a thing.
Just like those cress seeds growing underground, or eggs developing quietly in a nest, hidden, protected, being formed in ways no one can see, God is working.
Beneath the surface of our circumstances, beyond our limited view, He's orchestrating, preparing, developing what will one day emerge.
And when it does, we'll realize: He was working all along.
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Prayer
Lord, even when I don't see it, You're working, orchestrating details behind the scenes that I may never fully understand.
My perspective is so limited, confined to what's right in front of me, but You see the full picture, the beginning and the end, every piece falling into place.
Teach me to trust Your unseen work, to believe that silence doesn't mean absence, that just because I can't perceive movement doesn't mean nothing is happening.
You're weaving together circumstances, preparing hearts, opening doors, closing others, working all things for my good even when it looks like nothing is changing.
Help me rest in the confidence that You never stop working on my behalf, that Your hands are always moving, Your plans always unfolding, Your purposes always being fulfilled.
Remind me of the times I've looked back and seen Your fingerprints all over seasons when I thought You were distant, when I realize now You were working in ways I couldn't see.
Give me faith to trust the process, patience to wait without losing hope, peace to surrender outcomes I can't control to the God who controls everything.
Let me live today anchored in this truth, that even when I don't see it, You're working, and Your faithfulness never depends on my ability to perceive it.
In Jesus' name,
Amen.
Journaling Prompts
- Q.Where do you want to see progress right now?
- Q.What have you been waiting on God for?
- Q.What might He be growing beneath the surface?
- Q.When has God worked in a way you only saw later?
- Q.What would trusting Him without evidence look like today?
Art Print
If this devotional has spoken to you, the art print is available to bring into your home. It’s printed on quality art paper, unframed and ready to place wherever you need a quiet reminder that the Lord is working behind the scenes. You can find it in my shop, with free shipping included.
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