October 23, 2019
We were sitting together, one night, my youngest and me, discussing the happenings of our day. I’d had a rough one and was lamenting all my woes. After listening patiently, this is the wisdom my child imparted: “You know, Mom, I get that you are frustrated things didn’t go the way you wanted, but here’s some perspective. You were still ABLE to TRY, and that is a huge victory! A few months ago, that wouldn’t have been possible…” I sat there dumbfounded. Such wisdom!
In a small group, a friend bravely asked, “Am I the only one who feels they have to justify being a stay at home mom now that my kids are older?” We heard the heaviness with which she spoke. The internal conflict of her heart. “May I offer some encouragement?” I asked. “Yes, please,” she responded. “You, my friend, are a full time health provider for four people.” She looked questioningly at me. “Your youngest, your oldest, your husband, and yourself. And you absolutely should count yourself, because if you didn’t, you wouldn’t be able to care for the others.” Tears streamed down her face. “Thank you,” she mustered. “I needed that perspective.”
In a brief conversation with a new friend, she proclaimed something for me that had been my heart’s desire for a number of years. “I thought of you the other day. The Bible Study chapter we just finished talked about rejoicing when it makes no sense and being more real. That’s a lot like your ministry.” My ministry? I have a ministry? I’ve simply been striving to obediently share…I wouldn’t have claimed “Let’s Get REAL Together” as my ministry, but she saw life of it’s existence from her perspective.
Perspective is defined as “a particular attitude toward or way of regarding something; a point of view.”
If you are editing a photo, you have multiple perspective options…conveniently displayed at the bottom of your screen for choosing. Oh if life were that easy! To be able to simply “select” how you react or regard something in an instant! Or tweak it, just to your liking, by adjusting the brilliance, color, or sharpness. We would become masterful in manufacturing precision-perfect perspectives in any given situation. We would be able to edit out feelings of guilt or inadequacy. We would feel comfortable enough to truly be REAL, release each anxiety/lie, because our perspective would always be “on point.”
My friend, this “magical” editing option IS available to us. If we align our hearts, minds, and words with His truths, then we would have the power to change our perspective, in an instant! It takes diligence, diving into His Word daily. It takes relinquishing what we think we know and seeking His infallible truth about who we are. It takes practiced discipline to take a step back (and sometimes a deep breath) before we latch onto or unleash falsehood. It’s all in the perspective, or lens, in which we view things. His lens is forever filtered by grace, love, and mercy. We need to become more familiar with seeing things through His lens, because it is infinitely sharper and more accurate than Apple’s latest offerings.
Adrian Rogers wrote, “Wisdom is looking at life from God’s point of view.”
Let’s become wise and seek His truth in our perspective.
Let's Get REAL Together 