All These Things...: Changing Our Viewpoint

Sunday, June 28, 2009

Changing Our Viewpoint

Sometimes when we look at life, we think that things are never going to get better. We feel like this is the way things are always going to be. We see our lives as a still picture; a permanent snapshot whose 4 X 6 dimensions are a life's sentence without the chance of parole. I have to admit that I have had more than one episode of the snapshot mentality in my life. You know the words: "Well, I guess that this is just my lot in life,". But my prayer is that my viewpoint changes as well as my situation. I can remember working at a job that paid very little money. I had been constantly looking for another job and not having any success at all when an amazing thing happened to me. My mentality changed. Instead of feeling sorry for myself like I had been doing, I decided that I was not going to be defined by my current situation. I decided to change my snapshot mentality to a panoramic mentality.

You know what a panoramic picture is, don't you? It is a different viewpoint from the snapshot point of view because you can see more of the entire scene. This is because the panoramic picture shows more. It's like God's viewpoint. We typically look at our lives from a snapshot point of view. It's kind of like the picture on the left. God always looks at our lives from the panoramic point of view (picture below). God is looking at the total picture of our lives: where we came from, where we are now, and where we are headed to. We need to do the same. Don't just focus on where you are right now. Look at where God has brought you through. Think about all of the things that you have survived and all of the things that you have accomplished. Then try to focus on the future. Think about what you are going to do. Even if you don't know exactly where you are going, understand that you are not confined to a snapshot life, but that you are destined to fulfill all of the things that God sees as your destiny. Focus on His panoramic view.