Keeping A Proper Perspective

Keeping a Proper Perspective

Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people. Colossians 3:23

We allow others to become encouragement stealers when we give them control over how we feel about ourselves. Former prisoners of war often report they were determined not to let their captors dictate their emotions. If the guard was in a bad mood, the prisoner forced himself to be cheerful. If the guard was jovial, the prisoner would be aloof.

We may say we understand the importance of not letting an enemy control our emotions even though that person controls our physical conditions, but often we do absorb the reactions we receive from others. I remember an account in which a famous pianist gave a performance before three thousand people. Afterward, the audience was on its feet, clapping and cheering. The pianist bowed, but his eyes were on the lone occupant of a box seat. That man remained seated. The pianist turned, strode offstage, and refused to return for an encore. Later, a friend who had witnessed the abrupt exit asked him about it.

“You had three thousand people on their feet shouting your praises,” he said, “but you ignored them and looked only at that one man. Why?”

The pianist quietly replied, “That man was my teacher!”

How sad that he chose to look to the one he believed had power over him instead of the three thousand who were offering praise. But how often do we do the same thing? How would our days and our lives be different if we refused to be bound by perceived injustices? Recently I picked up a little gesture that really helps my attitude: Turning my palms down reminds me that whatever the latest irritation is, it certainly isn’t worth my tension. It’s my way of saying, “Let it go, Sandra. Let it go.”

Then as I turn my palms up again, I’m saying to the Lord, “Fill my life with what you want me to have.”

I confess I don’t always turn my palms down in a gentle fashion. Sometimes I thrust them toward the floor so quickly it seems as if my hands will snap right off. But the gesture is a personal reminder to release an irritation. And isn’t that better than continuing to carry it? —SANDRA

Lord, often I ignore encouragement because it doesn’t come from the one person from whom I long to hear it. I forget that person may be carrying a boatload of emotional pain and is incapable of offering what I think I need. Help me to let go of that dependence. Help me to hear what you want me to hear, including your voice and your encouragement.

Be sure to remember that nothing in your daily life is so insignificant and so inconsequential that the Lord will not help you.

—OLE HALLESBY (1879–1961), NORWEGIAN THEOLOGIAN AND TEACHER