Read: Luke 24:13–35
Two of Jesus’ disciples were walking a dusty road, weighed down by sorrow. They had trusted Jesus, believed he was the one sent to rescue them. But now, after the cross and the chaos, it felt like hope had slipped through their fingers. As they talked through their confusion, a stranger joined them.
They didn’t realize this “stranger” was actually the risen Jesus. He didn’t look like they imagined he would. He didn’t speak or act the way they expected. In their minds, the Messiah would be bold and obvious, impossible to miss. But Jesus approached gently, quietly, in a way that didn’t fit their script. And for a while, they just didn’t see him.
We can be the same. We create a version of how we think God should work: loud and clear, immediate and powerful. We expect the big moment, the miracle, the answer that fixes everything. And when it doesn’t come the way we expect, we assume He’s not there.
But what if he is? What if he’s been walking beside us all along? If we’re only looking for God to show up on our terms, we’ll miss the beauty of how he actually moves. Jesus often reveals himself in ways we wouldn’t predict. He works through stillness, through a stranger’s kindness, through Bible verses that suddenly feel personal.
Where might Jesus already be moving in your life, right now, even if you haven’t noticed?