an artist, another a pastor, and the third was a cowboy. As they stood on the
edge of the Canyon, each one responded differently.
The artist exclaimed, "What a beautiful scene to paint!"
The minister said, "What a wonderful example of the handiwork of God!"
The cowboy mused, "What a terrible place to lose a cow!"
Each of them was right, but perspective makes a big difference, doesn’t it?
And many times our perspective on a matter helps determine whether we will trust God or not. Russ Johnston urges us to "Get the right perspective. When Goliath
came against the Israelites, the soldiers all thought, ‘He’s so big we can never kill him.’ David looked at the same giant and thought, ‘He’s so big I can’t miss.’"
A little boy ran into the house and begged his dad to come see a strange dog that had come by. The father glanced at the animal and said, "What a horrible-looking creature!"
But the boy saw the dog through different eyes, and said, "But Daddy, he wags his tail good!"
His perspective made the difference in how he saw that dog. And perspective makes the difference in how we see our lives and the challenges we face.
Steve Farrar, in his book Family Survival in the American Jungle, told us of what Coach John McKay of USC said to his football team after they had been humiliated 51-0 by Notre Dame. McKay looked around the locker room and saw a group of exhausted and thoroughly depressed young men who were not accustomed to losing.
So he stood up on a bench and said, "Men, let's keep this in perspective. There are 800 million Chinese who don't even know this game was played."
Going through a rough time? Perspective can make all the difference. Someone
has observed, "When it gets dark enough you can see the stars." Robert Murray
McCheyne shared this advice: "Live near to God, and all things will appear to you little in comparison with eternal realities.
And don’t forget what David sang in Psalm 55:22–
"Cast your cares on the Lord, and he will sustain you."
--Rocky Henriques, www.uticabc.com