Faithfulness not wasted

I clapped for them again today.

Loud, joyful, sincere.

Even as my own dreams gathered more dust on the shelf of “someday.”

Even as I felt the familiar ache, that quiet, hollow echo in the soul that wonders if heaven has forgotten my name.

But later, alone, I whispered:

“God… what about me?”

It wasn’t bitterness. It was longing.

Not jealousy. Just that ache of someone who’s been planting faithfully in a field no one visits.

The kind of ache that doesn’t scream.

It just lingers.

I haven’t walked away.

I haven’t stopped sowing.

I haven’t stopped praying.

I haven’t stopped showing up.

But it’s hard when the soil doesn’t break and the fruit doesn’t show.

It’s hard when your obedience feels like it’s echoing into empty space.

When you wonder if what you’re building in the dark will ever be seen in the light.

And yet…

Somewhere in the silence, I hear it:

“Heaven sees what earth overlooks.”

I’m reminded that faithfulness isn’t always followed by fireworks.

Sometimes it’s followed by silence.

Sometimes it’s followed by more waiting.

More watering.

More wondering.

But never abandonment.

God doesn’t forget faithful hearts, He hides them.

Not to punish, but to prepare.

Not to ignore, but to intensify the glory that’s coming.

Hiddenness isn’t a sentence.

It’s a sanctuary.

It’s where roots are forged deep enough to hold the weight of the calling to come.

It’s where the applause of heaven drowns out the silence of men.

It’s where oil is crushed in private, so fire can burn in public.

So if you’re there, too…

Still clapping for others,

Still sowing unseen,

Still whispering “What about me?” into tear-stained pillows…

Let me tell you:

You are not invisible.

Your prayers have not gone unnoticed.

Your obedience is echoing in eternity.

And the God who sees in secret will reward in the open.

Not because you earned it,

But because He promised.

Hold steady.

The stage may be empty now.

But heaven is building something sacred behind the curtain.

And when it’s time,

Your yes in the dark will shine brighter than any spotlight ever could.

Until then,

I’ll keep clapping.

Keep sowing.

Keep trusting.

Because even when it feels invisible…

Faithfulness is never wasted.