It’s happened more often than I can count. I’m sitting around talking with a group of friends, and the topic of conversation jumps around like a ping-pong ball thrown about the room. Since I’m shy and soft-spoken, I’m content to listen to the happy banter until I decide to add my two cents worth to the subject of the moment. I open my mouth and say something – but no one hears me. The discussion continues as if I hadn’t spoken at all.

As you can imagine, my reaction is to clam up and not utter another word. On the few occasions when the others do hear me and pause to listen, someone more forceful is bound to interrupt and draw the attention away from me, and the result is the same. I sit quietly as the chatter goes on around me, and I wonder if anyone even notices my presence.

I’ve never taken a survey, but I would guess that those of us who are shy and introverted often feel invisible and unheard. We can’t compete with the outgoing and dynamic personalities around us, so we don’t even try. 

But I’m not here to lament over not being as gregarious as I would like to be. I’ve used my example to illustrate that all of us – regardless of our personality traits – struggle with unworthiness and the nagging thought that something is wrong with us. I can’t imagine what kind of self-doubts a life-of-the-party-type would have, but knowing how human beings think, I’m sure they have some (right?). 

When God sent Samuel to Bethlehem to anoint a new king, he chose the least likely candidate – a young shepherd boy. He did so because he knew David inside and out. What counted was his heart.

If we think we’re invisible – God sees us. If we think we’re misunderstood – God knows us. If we think no one cares – God loves us. If we think no one’s listening – God hears us. He created and understands us better than we do ourselves, and our limitations don’t stop him from calling us to accomplish his purposes.