Courage For Today

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View From the Top

Encouragement

“God…made us alive with Christ…And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus.” (Ephesians 2:4-6)

Many years ago, I was fortunate enough to visit Chicago on a business trip.  I was working for a financial company and was asked to visit a State Court there in Chicago to testify on behalf of my company.  This was my first visit to the Windy City (and so far, only trip) so I was not so much interested in the business purpose of my visit as I was seeing the big City.  I wasn’t disappointed and I have many fond memories of the beauty that is Chicago.

I remember being able to walk from my hotel to the courtroom.  It was only a few blocks walk and I was amazed at all the hustle and bustle and commotion.  Pedestrians walking everywhere.  Cars honking at every little thing. Mass Transit trains rumbling through the City.  Everyone was in a rush and speeding from one place to another.  It was an amazing–and nerve racking–thing to experience.

On the morning of the trial, I navigated through all of the chaos on the street, and finally made it to the courtroom. Of course, I had to go through the mandatory security checks and then on the elevator to the 33rd floor of the courtroom building.  I am not a fan of high places, but when I arrived at my floor, I decided to glance down at the street from my new view.  What had been chaos on the ground was now calm looking and silent from above.  What changed?  The only thing that changed was my view.

Whatever you may be going through in life at this time, I can tell you it is very easy to only look at your situation through your own eye’s view.  I know because I have done so myself.  When you look at your situation only through your eyes and your own perspective, the view is often like my view from the street that day in Chicago–hustle, bustle, and chaos.  Instead, I learned to change my focus through Christ and remember that, as a Christian, I am already seated on His right side.

Most times, it isn’t your circumstances that need to change; it is your view of the circumstances.  Changing your view from a ground level perspective to a Heavenly perspective makes all the difference in the world.

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View From 30,000 Feet

Strength

I just returned from a two-day business meeting in New York. Unfortunately, I don’t care much for flying in airplanes although it’s obviously necessary sometimes.  I am actually afraid of heights.  Whenever I go to an amusement park, I avoid the sky rides or any ride that has height involved.  I think it must be something about the whole “losing control” thing that bothers me.  I like to control my own destiny and I don’t like being high in the air totally dependent upon a wire to hold me up or a pilot to land a plane.  But, somehow, I endure flying even though I’m usually a nervous wreck going and coming.

The one thing I do enjoy, however, is the view from an airplane.  Even though I’m not crazy about heights, I do enjoy looking out the airplane window and the tremendous view.  There’s something magical about a view from 30,000 feet.  I like looking at the spider-like fingers of the roads and interstate systems and trying to determine where they lead and how they all work together.  I like looking out to see far away mountaintops which then reminds me of why the temperatures are colder in that area than others.  I like seeing buildings and cities that I didn’t know existed or can’t really tell what they might be.  In fact, when I’m coming home and landing in the Atlanta Airport, I usually try to locate the road I might live on or some familiar building to get a bearing on my location.  Eventually, we land and my view is then limited to my immediate surroundings or the particular road I might be trying to navigate.  As I’m driving around, I think back on my view from the airplane and how seemingly small my little place in the world really is when compared to the “big picture” I was viewing from up high.

I catch myself sometimes doing the same sort of analysis in my Christian Life.  When faced with an important decision to make or a problem to solve, I always tend to look at things from my Earthly perspective.  I look at the situation from my view and my abilities and my plans and my strengths and my weaknesses.  Instead, I should be praying to my Heavenly Father to tap in to HIS Strengths; HIS abilities; and HIS direction.  I’m reminded that God has the 30,000 view.  HE is looking down on us, on me, on you in our particular situations.  HE is able to see how everything flows together.  HE is able to see how the “roads” of our lives intersect and what “mountains” and trials lie ahead.  HE has the view that we don’t. Just like I have to trust the Airline Pilot to takeoff, fly, and land the airplane, I have to trust the Lord to do the same in my own Christian Life.  I have to take my eyes off my low-level, personal view, and gaze upon the Heavenly Father with HIS Worldly view.

Where are you with your Christian View?  Is it focused on you and yours and relying on your limited visibility?  If it is, I would encourage you to change your view Upwards to the Lord.  Trust HIM to have the Worldly view and the big picture to guide and direct you.

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Is Your Faith Pointing Upward or Outward

Faith

I’m one of those individuals that likes to “fix everything.”  I suppose it is simply part of my God-given DNA, but whenever there is a problem or situation, I want to try and bring order to the chaos.  I want to try and right whatever is wrong.  I want to take a certain situation and make every one live happily ever after.  I like to think that I am fairly confident in my God-given abilities and that if I work hard enough and long enough, things will all be “right.”

My life has had it’s share of difficulties and problems; too many to speak about here.  But, as I think back on some of those challenges, I can always remember trying to take control of each situation and trying to resolve everything myself.  After a few weeks or months of floundering around with my own futile efforts, I would come to the stark conclusion that I couldn’t fix this particular issue.  Talk about a blow to my ego and pride!!  How in the world could there be anything that I couldn’t make right, or at least know someone that could help me make it right?  Maybe you’ve had some of these revelations yourself?  Maybe you’re in one of those situations right now?  You’ve done everything you know to do and have no where else to turn.  Trust me; I’ve been there.

I learned that when I reached my darkest point, when I had no other place to turn, it was then that I gained my greatest strength.  I discovered that all this time, I was looking outwardly for worldly solutions to problems that the world couldn’t resolve.  It was at that moment, that I changed my Outward view to an Upward View.  And, oh, what a difference the View makes!!

As I began looking upward to Him, I was reminded of a Heavenly Father who created this Universe.  I was reminded of a Heavenly Father who sent his Son to Die for my sins.  I was reminded of a Heavenly Father who knows the number of hairs on my head.  I was reminded of a Heavenly Father who always was and always will be.  Suddenly, my problem doesn’t seem as over-whelming any longer. Now, I have tapped into the everlasting Upward strength of my Lord, and not the temporary outward “strength” of the World.

If you’re in one of those life moments at this time, I would encourage you to change the View.  Look Upward and not Outward and you’ll be amazed at the renewed strength you will receive.

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