A Matter of Perspective

“God is always doing 10,000 things in your life and you may be aware of three of them.”

- John Piper

Andy Andrews book, “The Noticer” has made a lasting imprint on my life. It has helped inform the way I counsel others through an exodus season, wandering in the desert, or in an exile season, feeling the flames all around! Just like Meshak, Shadrach and Abednego knew God was with them in the fire, Andrews helps us see our circumstances from a different perspective; one that reminds us that God is with us and working in our lives.

When the Israelites escaped from slavery in Egypt, they found themselves in a long term ‘pandemic’ of grumbling, which led to aimlessly wandering in the wilderness for forty years. Finally, at the cusp of entering the Promised Land, Moses sent twelve spies, one from each tribe of Israel, to see what obstacles might lie ahead. (Number 13:1-33)

Returning from their scouting trip, ten of the spies brought back a discouraging report, emphasizing the difficulty of the task before them.

They gave Moses this account,

"We went into the land to which you sent us, and it does flow with milk and honey! Here is its fruit. But the people who live there are very powerful, and the cities are fortified and very large”

- Numbers, 13:27-28

The other two - Joshua and Caleb - did not go along with the majority and tried to convince the Israelites that they could conquer the land. They chose to have a different perspective!

Then Caleb silenced the people before Moses and said, "We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it."

- Numbers, 13:30

Because of Joshua and Caleb’s perspective that God would fight the battle with them, they were the only men from their generation permitted to go into the Promised Land.

It’s all a matter of perspective. We have to choose to look through God’s lens when we’re in the wilderness, or the fire of refinement.

Last year was so hard in so many ways. But God did not abandon us in 2020. Through the cancer diagnosis, the divorce, job loss or death of a loved one, God comforts us. Through addiction or depression, He is with us!

In Deuteronomy 6, as the Israelites are preparing to enter the promised land, Moses teaches them the commands, decrees and laws to observe and pass on to future generations. In verses 10-12, he says:

When the Lord your God brings you into the land he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, to give you—a land with large, flourishing cities you did not build, houses filled with all kinds of good things you did not provide, wells you did not dig, and vineyards and olive groves you did not plant—then when you eat and are satisfied, be careful that you do not forget the Lord, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.

Like the Israelites, we need to remember God is with us as we reopen to what is possible as we move forward into the future.

I purposely wrote in my journal during 2020 “Lessons From the Pandemic,” and listed what I’ve learned and appreciated, in case I forget. I want to keep a proper perspective in the future.

In his book “The Noticer,” Andrews tells the story of the time he was sitting on a beach in Alabama, having lunch with a homeless man named Jones. Andrews is looking out at the dirty beach, frustrated because Jones gave him lunch out of a can. Jones senses Andrews’ disappointment and says, “You are eating sardines and Vienna sausages in the sand. I dined on surf and turf with an ocean view.”

No matter what uphill battles you face in the days and weeks ahead, let's remember that God is with us leading, refining and guiding. After all, it’s a matter of perspective.

“Sometimes God wants us to look at our circumstances through a new perspective -

His perspective.”

- Renee Swope

Pastor Pam

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