How is it that They did NOT recognize Jesus

Here we are in the Octave of Easter.  The Gospel is full of sightings of Jesus after He has been raised from the dead.  The thread is similar in all of the sightings, They do NOT recognize Jesus!  They walk with Him, He calls to them and only when he breaks the bread and offers it to them do they know... IT IS THE LORD!

That has always puzzled me that here are the very people that walked with Him, ate with Him, shared His journey and yet, they do NOT recognize Him!

How many times does Our Lord appear to us in our daily life and we do NOT recognize Him?  More times than I like to think about.  Did I not see a glimpse of Him in the frustrated checker at Wal-Mart?  Was that not Him in the irritating individual at church?  Did I not see Him in one that I find it hard to forgive?

We are called not only to reflect Christ in our lives, but to recognize Him in others.  To recognize Him especially in those that at first blush seem the farthest from Christ. Christ is easy to see in those that think like us and act like us.  But I believe that we are called to find the Christ in those that He appears to be most hidden.

Lord,
Help me today to see You.  To see you in those that irritate me.  In those that I find it hard to forgive.  In those that do not act in the way I think they should.

~Cindy