After the death of my mom, my dad remarried, and we moved to the booming metropolis of Sawmills. We began attending the local church and I made fast friends. Important for a 9-year-old whose life had just been turned upside down. However, a few months in, my step-mom’s former husband became very active in the congregation again so she and my father decided they would go to a sister church down the street. They allowed me to choose. Change churches or stay at the initial church, but go alone. I chose going it alone.
This never really posed an issue until one day when all the cars pulled out of the parking lot and there I stood. Alone.
Time passed. The church vans returned from taking the neighborhood kids home. And I was still there. For some bizarre reason I hid, I guess too embarrassed to admit I’d been forgotten.
The Israelites knew what it was like to feel forgotten. Enslaved in Egypt for generations, wandering in the wilderness for 40 years, and later exiled in Babylon, they repeatedly cried out to God, wondering: Do you even see us? Do you remember the covenant you made with Abraham?
The Babylonian exile was particularly devastating. In 586 BCE, the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem and the temple, the very place where God’s presence was believed to dwell. Stripped of their land, their identity, and their hope, the Israelites lamented:
“The Lord has forsaken me, the Lord has forgotten me.” (Isaiah 49:14)
It wasn’t just physical exile—it was spiritual disorientation. They felt abandoned by the very God who had promised to be their refuge.
Have you ever felt forgotten? Maybe not by your parents, but by friends, a spouse/partner, or even by God?
This feeling of being invisible, insignificant, or overlooked cuts deep. It’s a fear as old as humanity itself—a fear we see echoed in the cries of God’s people throughout scripture.
Into this despair stepped the prophets—Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and others—who reminded the Israelites that although they felt forgotten, they were never abandoned.
Isaiah wrote, “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast?… Though she may forget, I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands.”
This powerful image reassured the Israelites that God’s memory of them is eternal, etched into God’s very being.
The prophets didn’t just speak of immediate restoration; they pointed to a greater hope—a Messiah who would come to redeem not just Israel but the whole world. Isaiah 9:2 proclaims:
“The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.”
We read this and think of Jesus. But, it also had an immediate partial fulfillment in the rise of Hezekiah, Ahaz’s son. Hezekiah was a reforming king who turned Judah back to the worship of Yahweh and led significant religious and political renewal (2 Kings 18–20). He brought hope to a nation that had been walking in darkness, much like the imagery in Isaiah 9.
For centuries, the Israelites clung to these promises, even when God seemed silent. The waiting was long—hundreds of years passed between the last Old Testament prophet and the birth of Christ. But in the fullness of time, Jesus came, the living proof that God had not forgotten His people.
Sitting on those church steps as a child, I thought, “How could they forget me?” However, my dad and stepmom had not abandoned me. They merely made some very human errors and lost track of time. Eventually they returned.
Similarly, when we feel forgotten by God, it’s not because God has abandoned us.
Our perception of being overlooked doesn’t change the reality of God’s steadfast presence.
God reminds us through the promises God issued to the Israelite people, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” (Deuteronomy 31:6)
Then echoed again through the words of Jesus, “Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20)
The feeling of being forgotten is real, but it is not the truth. Just as the prophets reassured the Israelites, Jesus reassures us today: We are seen, loved, and remembered.
- When have you felt forgotten by God or others? How did you respond?
- How can the promises of scripture—like Isaiah 49:15—remind you of God’s faithfulness?
- Who in your life might feel forgotten, and how can you show them they are seen?
Advent is the season of waiting, the season of longing for God to make good on His promises. Just as the Israelites waited for the Messiah, we wait for Christ to come again. But in the waiting, we can rest assured: we are not forgotten. God’s light shines into our darkness, reminding us that God’s love never fails, God’s promises never falter, and God’s memory never fades.
Prayer:
Lord, thank You for the reminder that even when we feel forgotten, You are always with us. Help us to trust in Your promises, even in seasons of waiting. Open our eyes to those around us who feel unseen and give us the courage to reflect Your love to them. Amen.