“If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above… For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”
Colossians 3:1, 3
There is something unsettling about being hidden.
We live in a world that celebrates visibility. Platforms. Progress posts. Promotions. Announcements. Before-and-after pictures. We are constantly shown what growth is supposed to look like.
But the Kingdom of God does not grow that way.
Paul writes in Colossians 3 that our lives are “hidden with Christ in God.” Not displayed. Not paraded. Hidden.
And if we are honest, hidden can feel a lot like forgotten.
Hidden seasons for women today can look like so many things.
It can look like staying home with babies while everyone else seems to be building careers.
It can look like faithfully serving in a church role no one ever applauds.
It can look like battling anxiety or insecurity in private while smiling in public.
It can look like waiting for a door to open.
Hidden feels quiet. And sometimes lonely.
But hidden is not forgotten.
The Sacred Work of Underground Growth
Before anything beautiful pushes through soil, something invisible happens first.
Roots.
Deep, stretching, anchoring roots.
Psalm 1:2–3 says:
“His delight is in the law of the Lord… He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither.”
Did you notice that? It yields fruit in its season.
There is always a season before the fruit.
Roots grow in darkness. They stretch in places no one applauds. They deepen in unseen places. But without them, there is no stability, no fruit, no longevity.
Some of us are frustrated because we want fruit while God is still growing roots.
And roots take time.
When God hides you, He is not punishing you. He is preparing you.
Jesus Lived Hidden Too
We often skip over the hidden years of Jesus.
Luke 2:52 tells us, “And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.”
From childhood until age thirty, Scripture gives us very little detail. The Son of God lived in obscurity. He worked. He learned. He grew. Quietly.
Thirty years hidden. Three years public.
If the Son of God was not rushed into visibility, neither will we be.
The hidden years were not wasted years. They were forming years.
And formation always precedes manifestation.
When Hidden Feels Like Insecurity
Comparison thrives in hidden seasons.
You scroll and see someone else launching something. Writing something. Leading something. Building something. And you think, Why not me?
The enemy whispers, If you were really gifted, you’d be further by now.
But Colossians 3 does not tell us to measure ourselves against other women. It tells us to set our minds “on things that are above, not on things that are on earth” (Colossians 3:2).
Earthly thinking says: Be seen. Be noticed. Be validated.
Kingdom thinking says: Be rooted. Be faithful. Be hidden in Christ.
Your identity is not in how visible you are.
Your identity is in where you are hidden.
Hidden with Christ in God.
Secure. Covered. Protected.
Isaiah 49:2 says, “In the shadow of His hand He hid me.”
Hidden in His hand is not neglect. It is protection.
Sometimes God hides you because He loves you.
Hidden From What?
There are seasons when God hides us from:
• Pride that would crush us if success came too early
• Platforms that would expose weaknesses not yet healed
• Relationships that would distract us from formation
In hidden seasons, God deals gently and deeply with our hearts.
He confronts insecurity.
He heals wounds.
He untangles identity from performance.
He teaches us to hear His voice.
Hidden seasons are where we learn who we are without applause.
And that is spiritual maturity.
Identity That Cannot Be Taken
Paul says, “For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3).
This is not a suggestion. It is a declaration.
You have died to the old identity. The striving one. The proving one. The self-protecting one.
Your real life is hidden.
Hidden means secure.
When something is hidden in God, no algorithm can diminish it. No critic can dismantle it. No season of obscurity can erase it.
John 10:28 says, “No one will snatch them out of My hand.”
You are not dangling in uncertainty. You are hidden in Him.
Even when no one sees your obedience.
Even when no one sees your tears.
Even when no one sees your quiet surrender.
He sees.
Hebrews 6:10 says, “God is not unjust so as to overlook your work and the love that you have shown for His name.”
He does not overlook hidden faithfulness.
Growing Women, Not Just Doing Things
In our culture, we often measure growth by productivity.
But God measures growth by Christlikeness.
Hidden seasons often strip away what we do so God can shape who we are.
Instead of asking:
When will I be seen?
We begin asking:
Who am I becoming?
Are we becoming more patient?
More secure?
More anchored in truth?
Less reactive?
Less easily shaken?
That is maturity.
Ephesians 3:17 speaks of being “rooted and grounded in love.”
Rooted women are not easily toppled by comparison.
Grounded women are not easily distracted by noise.
Hidden seasons grow rooted women.
The Gift of Being Unseen
There is a quiet intimacy in being unseen by the world but fully seen by God.
Matthew 6:6 says, “When you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.”
The secret place is not punishment. It is invitation.
Hidden seasons invite us into deeper prayer, deeper trust, deeper reliance.
Sometimes God removes the spotlight so we can rediscover His face.
And when His face becomes enough, public recognition loses its power.
If You Feel Buried
Maybe you feel buried right now.
But seeds are buried before they bloom.
Jesus said in John 12:24, “Unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.”
Burial is not the end. It is the beginning of multiplication.
You are not buried to be forgotten.
You are planted to bear fruit.
The soil feels heavy. The darkness feels long. But something is happening underneath.
God never wastes hiddenness.
Practical Application: Living Faithfully While Hidden
If you are in a hidden season, here are some ways to steward it well:
-
Guard your thoughts.
When comparison creeps in, bring your mind back to truth. Speak Colossians 3:3 over yourself. My life is hidden with Christ in God. -
Practice secret faithfulness.
Serve when no one sees. Pray when no one knows. Give without posting about it. Let your roots grow deep. -
Ask God what He is forming.
Instead of asking when this season will end, ask what He is shaping in you. -
Limit comparison triggers.
If certain platforms stir insecurity, step back. Protect your peace. -
Celebrate others without diminishing yourself.
Another woman’s visibility does not mean your invisibility. God writes stories individually. -
Stay planted.
Do not uproot yourself out of impatience. Fruit grows in season.
Hidden seasons are not passive seasons. They are powerful ones.
You are not behind.
You are not forgotten.
You are being formed.
And what God forms deeply, He sustains beautifully.
Prayer
Father,
For every woman who feels unseen, overlooked, or buried, remind her that she is hidden with Christ in You. Quiet the voice of comparison. Strengthen her roots. Teach her to trust Your timing. Form her deeply where no one else can see. Let her find security not in visibility, but in belonging to You. And when the season of fruit comes, let it be sustained by the depth You built in secret.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen.
Add comment
Comments