Day 20

Scripture: 1 Peter 1:8 — “Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, yet you believe, and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory.”

Clip: Jesus feeds the 5000

Reflection:

“Though you do not see him…” The disciples looked at 5,000 hungry people and five loaves, and they could not see the solution. They saw lack, not the Lord. This is our state. We live in the tension between what we see (the impossible problem) and Who we love (the God of the impossible). Joy is born in that gap—when we offer our “five loaves” in obedience, and He creates an abundance we could never have engineered.

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, I do not see You. I see my lack, my “five loaves and two fish.” It is not enough. I am filled with anxiety. Help me to love You in this place of not-seeing. Take my pathetic offering and multiply it. Fill me with the “inexpressible and glorious joy” that comes from watching You work.

Practice:

Take a moment to reflect on a “not yet” in your life — a desire, healing, reconciliation. Offer it to God in faith, rejoicing that He hears and works.

From the Catechism (CCC):
“Even if it must pass through the valley of the shadow of death, since Christ is with us, hope does not disappoint.” (CCC 1824)

From YOUCAT:
“Faith transforms the unseen into a present reality; joy springs forth from trust in God’s promises.” (YOUCAT 306)