“He Looked on Me”
Daily Devotion for Advent | Wednesday, December 12, 2018
After these days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months she kept herself hidden, saying, “Thus the Lord has done for me in the days when He looked on me, to take away my reproach among people.”
Luke 1:24-25
Did you ever feel overlooked—like nobody saw you, or cared? That can be a miserable feeling. It’s hard to be the only one not invited to a party—the only one not in a group conversation—the only one among your friends who is not dating, or not married. And it’s really hard to be like Elizabeth—to feel like the only one not having a baby when there are pregnant women everywhere, and young children playing up and down the street.
It’s bad enough to feel invisible to your friends and neighbors, but it’s even harder when you feel invisible to God. Elizabeth knew that children are a gift from God. Why, then, was He not giving her that gift? Had she done something wrong? Or was God simply overlooking her—did she not matter in His eyes? That hurts. After all, none of us deserves to be noticed by God, but we still pine for His attention. We long for His notice—even for His love. And when we feel ignored, it hurts.
It was many long years before Elizabeth had the joy of seeing, in her own body, that God had not forgotten her. “He looked on me,” she said. The proof was the baby growing inside her, though she was an old woman by that time. But you and I don’t need to wait so long. God has looked on us, too. The proof is the baby growing inside of Mary—God’s own dear Son Jesus, who came to be your Savior.
In Jesus, you can see that God has remembered you. He has looked on you with love—He has even made you His own child. You are not forgotten. You are beloved.
THE PRAYER
Thank You, Father, for seeing me even when I feel invisible. Help me to trust in Your love which never leaves me. Amen.
REFLECTION QUESTIONS
- When do you feel most invisible?
- Would you rather feel overlooked or highly visible? Why?
- How has God’s notice of you made a difference in your life?
Brought to you in partnership with Lutheran Hour Ministries – lhm.org/advent
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About These Devos
THE COMING KING Advent Devotions 2018
The coming Savior’s birth was foretold by the prophets of old and later experienced by many who were on hand as He came into this world. Mary and Joseph, Zechariah and Elizabeth, Simeon, shepherds, wise men from the east, a legion of angels, and even King Herod—all play their parts in the Gospel narratives that speak of the Savior’s incarnation. Explore the many ways their lives were touched as God became one of us, for each of us, in The Coming King.
Lutheran Hour Ministries (LHM) is a Christian outreach ministry supporting churches worldwide in its mission of Bringing Christ to the Nations—and the Nations to the Church.