Seen by Jesus: A Lesson from NFL Draft Night

Remember the NFL Draft, 2025?

For top football prospects, especially those expected to go in the first round, the NFL Draft is the culmination of years of sacrifice, sweat, and dreams. Families gather, cameras roll, and hearts race as names are called and destinies are changed in real time.

Among the hopefuls was Shedeur Sanders, the highly touted quarterback from the Colorado Buffaloes. By all accounts, he was a surefire first-round pick. But as the night wore on, name after name was announced, and Shedeur’s was not among them. He sat in his Texas home, surrounded by family, waiting. Watching. Hoping.

And then… the first round ended.

There must have been frustration and embarrassment. That familiar sting of being overlooked—of being told, even silently, “not yet.” It’s a tough pill to swallow, no matter how talented you are, no matter how bright your future still looks. Sanders was finally chosen in the fifth round. But that was not the expectation. 

There’s something deeply human about that moment of being passed over. Whether it’s missing out on a promotion or not making the junior high basketball team, those moments sting. They can shape our character, teach us resilience, and even humble us—but there’s a deeper level to being overlooked that hits harder. It happens in our everyday relationships—when someone close to us fails to notice, affirm, or care. 

That kind of neglect can leave a lasting mark. Because every human being longs to be seen, known, and valued. And it’s often in the small gestures—a word of encouragement, a kind glance, a thoughtful question—that we affirm someone’s worth and remind them they matter.

Jesus was the master of noticing the people no one else saw. 

He noticed the ones everyone else ignored. The woman at the well, isolated by her past and forced to draw water alone—He saw her.

The woman with the issue of blood, unclean and cast out from worship? He touched her.

The demon-possessed man, feared and rejected by his community—Jesus restored him.

Jesus never overlooked anyone. His vision was 20/20. He saw people exactly as they were—broken, flawed, wounded—and yet He also saw who they could become through love and grace.

Let’s be like Jesus. Let’s see people. Really see them. Let’s stop overlooking those around us and start affirming them in the small, quiet ways that often mean the most.

You never know—your kindness may be the turning point in someone’s story.

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