![\"Invisible,](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tomme-stevenson.com\/website\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/Opposite-of-Love-Wiesel-scaled.png?resize=525%2C312&ssl=1\")
I sometimes feel invisible. By nature, I\u2019m a worker bee. I prefer to stay in the background. When the spotlight is on me, I\u2019m uncomfortable. I find it hard to accept a compliment. To me, it\u2019s not about humility; it\u2019s about being truthful. It\u2019s not about lacking self-confidence; it\u2019s about being realistic. I am who I am: nothing extraordinary. I can do what God created me to do.<\/p>\n
Philippians 2:3:<\/strong> \u201cDo nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves.\u201d<\/p>\n So for a guy who likes to live in the shadows, why is invisibility a problem? I struggle with that question. I don\u2019t want fame or recognition for greatness. A couple of decades ago, I changed my life significantly. Up to that point, my life was about me. Not in a selfish way, but in a determined one. I wanted to be the best version of me I could be. I would outwork anyone to achieve that goal. It wasn\u2019t about money, position, or fame; it was about self-respect.<\/p>\n Philippians 2:4:<\/strong> \u201cNot looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.\u201d<\/p>\n Then one day, God said, “Stop.” He wanted me to realize that life was never about me. It has always been about the people God puts in my path. I was to use all the resources God gave me \u2014 intelligence, relationships, experiences, and knowledge \u2014 to help others. That lifted an immense weight off my shoulders. I was no longer responsible for results, only for obedience. It was freeing beyond words.<\/p>\n I stepped into the background and have lived there ever since. I like it here. I can do my thing unnoticed. I can create my own version of self-actualization by living vicariously through others’ achievements. The greatest joy of my life is watching others bloom. Every day, I have the joy and privilege of watching people younger than me begin the journey toward becoming the person God always intended them to be. Some of these people are in their twenties.<\/p>\n I think this is the turning point for me. At the same time, I get to see young people experimenting with life, the excitement of discovery, and the joy of becoming. On the other hand, I know they must learn from disappointment and loss.<\/p>\n 1 Corinthians 10:24:<\/strong> \u201cLet no one seek his own, but each one the other\u2019s well-being.\u201d<\/p>\n In the middle of this, I get lost. I fade so far into the background that even the shadows forget I\u2019m there. Most of my life, this is OK, even preferred. But not always.<\/p>\n I don\u2019t know how to present this without sounding at some level arrogant or egotistical. It is not that at all. I have lived an incredible life, with all its ups and downs, knowing how difficult it is to juggle family, work, and community. I understand why I am not the center of anyone\u2019s universe. We are all planets, part of our own solar systems, spinning through one of many galaxies. Life is complex.<\/p>\nLife<\/h2>\n
Living in the Shadows<\/h2>\n
Apathy verse Silence<\/h2>\n