Perspective
Valley Church
I’m a glass half full guy. I haven’t always been, and I’m certainly not a natural optimist. In fact, the opposite is true! I have a natural tendency to assume the worst – of people, of situations, of circumstances. It’s something I really have to work hard on. I have to make a conscious decision every time to choose to believe the best.
We so often get told “Don’t get your hopes up!”. Personally, I AM getting my hopes up. I am hoping and believing for the best. The best future, the best marriage (7 1/2 weeks to go!), the best vocation, the best life! And I can be confident because my hope is in Christ (Heb 10:23), not in my own strength, intellect or ability, but because He is faithful.
Really, it all comes down to perspective. I was in Mumbai, India in October last year and saw a man placed in the middle of the street with no arms and no legs. We were told that professional beggars had placed him there as a business endeavour to make money. As people put money next to him, the professional beggars would collect it. Needless to say I was shocked, appalled, unable to fix it…
It made me realise that we, in the West, living in great wealth and abundance… if we can’t be grateful for where we are now, we will never ever be grateful for anything. We need to remember what Jesus Christ did for each of us on the cross so we can live grateful today, in hope for the future with a perspective that puts Christ at the centre, and People as our mission.
What areas of your life do you struggle with showing gratitude? What would you hope for if you knew you wouldn’t be disappointed? Dare to hope for it!
– Dave