30 Day Challenge: "One Month To Love" Day #4

Copyright@2010 by Kerry and Chris Shook
(Published by Waterbrook Press 12265 Oracle Blvd, Ste. 200 Colorado, Springs, Co. 80921)

Week 1: The Art of Being All There

Day 4: Invisible (Being All There On a Deeper Level

Series Scripture: “A friend loves at all times and a brother is born for a time of adversity” Prov. 17:17

Quote: “The question is not what you look at but what you see.” - Henry David Thoreau

Have you ever felt like you were invisible? Ever been talking to someone and realized they weren’t really listening but were looking past you to see if someone more important was in the room?Sadly, it’s often  the people closest to us that we treat as invisible. We some times look right at them but miss who they really are. We can be with them in person but gloss over their needs and concerns, failing to see what’s underneath. 

**Do you really see the people  closest to you? Do you see their needs , their feelings, their dreams, their fears, their passions? Do you see their heart?**

Unfortunately, it sometimes takes a breakdown- of a car or a life - to refocus us on whats really important. Jesus puts this in perspective in John 4 when he encounters a samaritan woman. The bible tells us that Jews did not associate with Samaritans, but Jesus  focused on hearts, not prejudices. Despite societal customs that surround ed their meeting , Jesus saw her heart. Of course, Jesus is God, and we’re not . We don’t have divine powers to see into people’s hearts. But in Jesus we have a model for relationships. He dismissed the distractions of society to notice and speak to the woman at the well. He perceived that what she claimed on the surface was not what truly rested deep in her heart. An the God of the universe chose to be all there for her.

Maybe you haven’t even taken the time with someone to share your won needs. One of the interesting things about the account of the woman at the well is that Jesus started it all by expressing his need: “I need a drink of water.” When you dare to express your own unseen needs, you tacitly give permission for others to do the same. If you really want to be a good friend or son or daughter, you’ll care enough to look and listen for what someone is wrestling with underneath.

Challenge

1.Spend some time alone thinking about the people you’ve named as your key relationships and reflecting  on times you’’ve been together recently. What was said? What wasn’t said that might suggest a deeper need?

2. Take a second look at someone this week in your neighborhood, or school whom nobody (including you) really notices. How could you make that individual feel noticed and valuable?