He sees your hidden labors to love a difficult spouse. He sees your sleepless nights serving sick children. He sees what never escapes the anonymity of your four walls. He sees your work that will never be Instagram-worthy or garner offers from corporate sponsors. He sees diary entries never published and remembers prayers never heard by human ears. He sees unnoticed service to your church and offerings that kept you from putting more presents under the tree. No human eye will ever see some of those things. If they did, it wouldn’t be noteworthy. But Jesus takes notice of every sacrifice.

“I finally feel seen!”

We read an article that describes something we’ve long internalized yet struggled to express. We listen to a complete stranger verbally capture something we feel deeply. We sit down to talk to a professional who finally gets us. Has he been listening to my inner dialogue? How does she know what I’m feeling? It’s a powerful experience.

“I just want to be heard!”

We shout into the void in hopes that someone—anyone—would listen. We grow frustrated in our relationships because it seems like even the people closest to us have given up trying. We feel isolated and alone. We wonder if we’re the only one alive experiencing this..

When we feel seen or heard, we’re expressing the relief of validation. We’re all terrified of not being recognized, of living invisible lives. We google our symptoms in hopes of experiencing that powerful “you, too!” moment. We search for diagnoses because labels validate us. If it has a medical name then other people have it too, and it must exist outside of my own head. It must be real. I’m finally seen!

We turn to social media because every like, share, and comment is immediate validation. Someone else resonates with what we’ve expressed. We check back chronically with every ping or red dot. We’re addicted to validation. It feels good. We’ve been heard (Substack/Twitter) or seen (Instagram/TikTok). We’re hooked.

But what if we’re settling? What if there’s something better than feeling seen or feeling heard? What if the fleeting satisfaction of immediate gratification is preventing us from experiencing validation infinitely more substantive and more satisfying?

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