Perception can be a funny thing. Since I’m in bed all day, I rarely know what the weather is like. I see through my windows that the sun is shining, the trees are barely moving, “It must be a nice, warm spring day,” I think. Until a visitor shows up… wearing a down jacket and scarf, and I realize it’s actually quite cold. Or like yesterday when it was cloudy and the trees were moving back and forth, so I thought it must be cold and windy. Then my dad comes over and says its 60 degrees out! Good thing I’m not a meteorologist.

Sometimes what we see with our eyes can be deceiving, yet other times it can verify the truth. When Jesus rose from the grave and appeared to the disciples, Thomas wasn’t there. The disciples told Thomas “Jesus is alive!” but Thomas said, “Unless I see in His hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into His side, I will never believe” (John 20:25).

Eight days later Jesus came back to the disciples and this time Thomas was there. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them. Then He said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see My hands; and put out your hand, and place it in My side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.”

Busted! Jesus knew what Thomas had said and He came back to let Thomas see Him for himself. Have you ever been in a situation like that? Caught red-handed, an awkward moment, you didn’t think the person you were gossiping about would ever know you said that…

But Jesus didn’t come to Thomas to ridicule him for not believing, or to rub it in Thomas’s face that He really was alive. Instead Jesus gave Thomas the opportunity to believe.

Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

Thomas gets a bad reputation for doubting. But here he sees Jesus and believes. Look back at verse 25 – Thomas says he won’t believe unless he puts his fingers into Jesus’s nail marks. But once he sees Jesus he believes. No extra proof necessary.

If you are looking for Jesus to show up in your life, believe He will. If you are wondering if He really exists, seek Him with all your heart and you will find Him. If you are waiting on a miracle, ask Him and believe He will do it. But know that He might show up in a different way than you expect. You may have to walk through some storms before you get to your miracle. But blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.

Bible story is found in John 20:25-29

Two men were walking to the next town and a third joined them. The third man was Jesus, but the two didn’t recognize Him. Without realizing it was Jesus, the two talked all about Jesus – the miracles He performed, the signs and wonders, and His death. They were sad because they thought Jesus was the promised Messiah, but they thought He was dead. Now it had been three days and His body was missing from the tomb.

They continued walking, not knowing Jesus their resurrected Messiah was next to them. They stopped for the evening and ate together. “And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And He vanished from their sight. They said to each other, ‘Did not our hearts burn within us while He talked to us on the road, while He opened to us the Scriptures?'” (Luke 24:31-32)

It’s easy to see this clearly looking back, isn’t it? In the moment, you’re upset, sad, emotional, and your eyes are blinded to seeing Jesus is with you. But when you come out of that trial, you can look back on your life and see how God was directing everything for your good.

Don’t wait for the end to come in order to see God’s faithfulness. Stop right now and take a moment to see how God is with you, caring for you, loving you, helping you get rid of sin in your life, helping you become a better person. Sometimes it’s painful. Sometimes it requires difficult decisions. But in the end it is worth it. And in the meantime, know Jesus is near.

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who[a] have been called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28)

“The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; He delivers them from all their troubles. The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.” (Psalm 34:17-18)

I’m watching the Super Bowl, like the rest of the country. I’m not sure who I’m cheering for yet. I have a friend who loves the Giants, but my brother-in-law is a die-hard Patriots fan. I prefer rooting for the underdog. There’s just something about the guy-who-was-supposed-to-lose winning that I love. Maybe it’s because the Bible is full of victorious underdogs.

David vs. Goliath
David, a shepherd boy, youngest of his family, the one not in the army. Yet David is unwilling to let this giant make fun of God’s people. David chooses to trust God, not fear Goliath, and God gives David the victory.

Daniel vs. King Nebuchadnezzar
Daniel was a man of God who worked for the king. But when the king commanded everyone to worship an image of him, Daniel refused. Facing certain death, Daniel still chose faith, and God saved him.

Moses
Born when Hebrew baby boys were being killed, Moses was put in a basket on the river and was saved and raised as a son in the house of the Egyptian Pharoah. Moses grew up, murdered an Egyptian, fled for his life, then was called by God to lead His people. But Moses said he wasn’t a good enough speaker. God brought Moses’ brother in to help, but God still used Moses in big ways, despite his murderous and doubting past.

Speaking of people with questionable pasts, a friend reminded me of Hebrews 11, known as the hall of faith, yet lists many people you wouldn’t think would be recognized:
Abraham slept with Sarah’s servant because he wasn’t man enough to say no to her and that he was trusting God for an heir through Sarah. Sarah is mentioned in the hall of faith and she tried to manipulate to bring about God’s promise and then laughed when she was told she would get pregnant in her old age. Rahab was a prostitute and yet is listed for her faith. The list goes on.

All of this encourages me and reminds me that no one is perfect, we’re all “underdogs.” But God delights in using imperfect, sinful, weak people to prove that any victory we have is only because of His grace and strength, His work in us.

As for the Super Bowl, I’ll be rooting for the underdog… as soon as I figure out who that is.

In the third chapter of Daniel, three men refuse to follow the King’s orders because it contradicts their faith in the Lord. The King has them bound and thrown into the fire. The three men were unafraid. They knew God was able to save them if He so chose. The men should have been burned up immediately, but instead The King says “Didn’t we throw three men in? I see four men, unbound, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.”

The King called the men out. Their hair wasn’t singed, their clothes weren’t burned, they didn’t even smell like fire. God was with them and the King chose to worship the God who saves.

What a comfort to know God is with us in the fires of life. He loosens the fears that bind us and protects us from the flames. Thank You Lord for being the God who saves!