Day 5: Becoming a People Whose Face Is Turned Toward Others
Day 5: Becoming a People Whose Face Is Turned Toward Others
Read: John 1:14-18, Luke 15:1-7, 2 Corinthians 5:18-20
Yahweh-Shammah is not only a comfort to receive. It is a way of life to embody.
If God’s face is turned toward us in Jesus, then we become people who turn our faces toward others.
John says, “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” In Jesus, God came near. He came near to sinners. He came near to doubters. He came near to the ashamed. He came near to the sick. He came near to outsiders. He came near to people religious communities had pushed away.
Jesus is the clearest picture of the Father’s face turned toward humanity.
If you wonder what God is like, look at Jesus. Look at Him touching lepers. Eating with sinners. Welcoming children. Forgiving failures. Restoring the ashamed. Dying for His enemies. Rising from the dead.
The face of Jesus is the face of God turned toward you.
But this was never meant to stop with us. The church is called to become a living witness of God’s nearness.
There are people walking into church, homes, workplaces, schools, and neighborhoods quietly asking the same question: “Will anyone see me?” “Will anyone make room for me?” “Could God’s face be toward someone like me?”
They may not ask it out loud. They may come in guarded, skeptical, lonely, angry, addicted, divorced, ashamed, spiritually numb, or wounded by church. But underneath the surface, many are asking, “Is there grace for me?”
And one of the ways God answers that question is through His people. Through our welcome. Through our patience. Through our love. Through our willingness to make room. Through the way we refuse to turn our backs on people Jesus has turned His face toward.
Some people may not believe God’s face is toward them until they experience God’s people refusing to turn their faces away.
So the question is not only, “Do I believe Yahweh-Shammah is with me?” The question is also, “Will I become a person through whom others experience the nearness of God?”
Reflection Questions:
Choose one person today and intentionally turn toward them.
Send the text. Make the call. Ask the question. Invite them in. Listen without rushing. Welcome without fixing. Let your presence become a small sign of God’s presence.
Prayer:
Jesus, You are God come near. Thank You for turning Your face toward sinners, sufferers, doubters, and wounded people like us. Make me the kind of person who turns toward others with the grace I have received. Make our church a place where people discover that You are near. Amen.
Closing Prayer for the Week
Prayer:
Yahweh-Shammah, You are the God who is there. You were there with Jacob in the ordinary place, and You are here with us now. Open our eyes to Your presence. Turn our hearts toward You. Heal what is wounded. Redeem what is broken. Awaken what is numb. And make us a people whose faces are turned toward others with the love and grace of Jesus. Amen.
Read: John 1:14-18, Luke 15:1-7, 2 Corinthians 5:18-20
Yahweh-Shammah is not only a comfort to receive. It is a way of life to embody.
If God’s face is turned toward us in Jesus, then we become people who turn our faces toward others.
John says, “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” In Jesus, God came near. He came near to sinners. He came near to doubters. He came near to the ashamed. He came near to the sick. He came near to outsiders. He came near to people religious communities had pushed away.
Jesus is the clearest picture of the Father’s face turned toward humanity.
If you wonder what God is like, look at Jesus. Look at Him touching lepers. Eating with sinners. Welcoming children. Forgiving failures. Restoring the ashamed. Dying for His enemies. Rising from the dead.
The face of Jesus is the face of God turned toward you.
But this was never meant to stop with us. The church is called to become a living witness of God’s nearness.
There are people walking into church, homes, workplaces, schools, and neighborhoods quietly asking the same question: “Will anyone see me?” “Will anyone make room for me?” “Could God’s face be toward someone like me?”
They may not ask it out loud. They may come in guarded, skeptical, lonely, angry, addicted, divorced, ashamed, spiritually numb, or wounded by church. But underneath the surface, many are asking, “Is there grace for me?”
And one of the ways God answers that question is through His people. Through our welcome. Through our patience. Through our love. Through our willingness to make room. Through the way we refuse to turn our backs on people Jesus has turned His face toward.
Some people may not believe God’s face is toward them until they experience God’s people refusing to turn their faces away.
So the question is not only, “Do I believe Yahweh-Shammah is with me?” The question is also, “Will I become a person through whom others experience the nearness of God?”
Reflection Questions:
- Who in your life needs you to turn your face toward them with grace?
- Who have you been tempted to avoid, dismiss, judge, or overlook?
- How can your home, small group, ministry team, workplace, or church become a place where people experience God’s welcome?
- What would it look like for you to make room for someone who is guarded, wounded, skeptical, or ashamed?
Choose one person today and intentionally turn toward them.
Send the text. Make the call. Ask the question. Invite them in. Listen without rushing. Welcome without fixing. Let your presence become a small sign of God’s presence.
Prayer:
Jesus, You are God come near. Thank You for turning Your face toward sinners, sufferers, doubters, and wounded people like us. Make me the kind of person who turns toward others with the grace I have received. Make our church a place where people discover that You are near. Amen.
Closing Prayer for the Week
Prayer:
Yahweh-Shammah, You are the God who is there. You were there with Jacob in the ordinary place, and You are here with us now. Open our eyes to Your presence. Turn our hearts toward You. Heal what is wounded. Redeem what is broken. Awaken what is numb. And make us a people whose faces are turned toward others with the love and grace of Jesus. Amen.
Posted in Daily Devotional