Perspective

Perspective

We don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen.

NOT LONG AGO our garage door up and died—on the morning my husband left on a weeklong business trip. And as I was standing in my garage looking at my door that was completely ajar—listening to the garage door repair man talk about door differences, tracks, springs, and such—I threw a little pity party in my head.

But then I talked with a friend who had water in their basement. For the third time. In a house that had never flooded before. This all happened the same week another dear friend’s house burned in a fire that started in the attic. It was the worst place for a fire to begin, as it seemingly smoldered for hours before it was discovered. Her family emerged safe and sound, but they would have to spend the next several months living in a rental as their house was gutted, cleaned, and fixed.

So how do you overcome a poor attitude over a minor (or even major) fiasco? I thought about my friend with water in the basement and how much worse that was for her to deal with, and suddenly, my garage door didn’t seem like that big of a deal.

And when I talked with my friend about her water troubles, she said she reminded herself of our other friend who had just had the fire, and suddenly, the water didn’t seem too bad.

And when I talked with my friend who’d just had the fire, she shared about others whose life situations were far worse than hers.

Remembering who in this world may have it just a little bit worse than I do can do wonders for my perspective. Whether they’re big or small, we all face situations every day meant to steal our joy, our drive, or our dreams. Shaking our heads in response, grumbling under our breath, or becoming annoyed with life can be common responses. But we always have a choice. We can choose to focus on the trouble we see now, or we can shift our gaze to what is eternal. Changing our perspective can make all the difference.

Lord, help me to shift my perspective from what is fleeting to what is eternal. Amen.

-Kendra

One Good Step: What is one area in your life that you need to change your perspective on? How can thinking about and praying for the struggles of someone else or looking at it from an eternal perspective help you to do that?