The Daily: Friday December 12, 2025

While John was in prison, he heard about the works the Messiah was performing, and sent a message by way of his disciples to ask Jesus, “Are you ‘The One who is to come’ or do we look for another?”
In reply, Jesus said to them, “Go back and report to John what you hear and see:
‘Those who are blind recover their sight;
those who cannot walk are able to walk;
those with leprosy are cured;
those who are deaf hear;
the dead are raised to life;
and the anawim—the “have-nots”—
have the Good News preached to them.’

Matthew 11:1-5

Hope As A Way of Seeing

Instead of giving John a simple yes or no answer, Jesus offered something far more valuable: a new way of seeing. "Go and tell John what you see and hear," Jesus said, pointing to the blind receiving sight, the lame walking, and the poor hearing good news. Jesus was teaching John - and us - that hope isn't about having guarantees about the future. Hope is about learning to perceive God's work in the present moment. This shift changes everything. When we're waiting for dramatic, unmistakable signs of God's presence, we might miss the quiet miracles happening all around us.

When we're looking for the overthrow of all injustice, we might overlook the individual lives being transformed. When we're expecting immediate answers to our prayers, we might fail to notice the small ways God is already moving. Hope becomes an active practice of paying attention. It's choosing to look for signs of life even when the desert still looks like a desert. It's noticing the person who found healing, the community that came together in crisis, the small act of kindness that changed someone's day. This kind of hope doesn't deny the reality of suffering or pretend that everything is fine. Instead, it trains our eyes to see both the brokenness and the mending, both the darkness and the light breaking through.

Reflection
What small signs of God's work in your life or community might you have been overlooking while waiting for bigger, more dramatic changes?

Prayer
God, open my eyes to see the ways you are already at work around me. Help me to practice hope as a way of seeing, noticing your quiet presence even in difficult circumstances. Train my heart to perceive your love in both the ordinary and extraordinary moments. Amen.