Vantage Point

I have developed a new skill, viewing situations from different perspectives. I did not realize I possessed this skill until one day I turned a problem around. Thus, I began practicing this method of seeing the world differently. For example, when people ask me to assist them. I have an option to only view this request through my eyes. The response may be, “Why? Or don’t they know I am busy?”. Looking at it from their perspective, if they asked me then they must need something or there is no one else to ask. From Jesus’ perspective, “Would it hurt you to assist?”

Being able to view situations from different vantage points has its benefits. It allows me to remain humble because I can assist someone in need. It also allows me to put myself in their situation, I find myself asking questions such as, “What would I do if I was in their situation?”. I used to not be able to see some situations through the eyes of others, but once I started practicing this skill, it led me to see the reason why some people respond the way they do. However, there are some people that I will never understand, despite the way I turn a situation, and that is okay.

I was able to develop this skill by putting myself in the other person’s shoes (hypothetically). I used to ask why people do the things they do, but either I will discover through looking from a different ledge or not. Again, if not, it is not worth knowing. Thinking about a common idiom, “there are two sides to every story”, meaning I may view something differently than someone else. But what happens if I choose to look at it from a third or fourth view? I get an even better picture of the situation. I always laugh when something happens and my sister says did you see that, I share what I saw and she says, “No, …”. Well, what I saw was not wrong it was just from a different angle. In an accident, the person that got hit from the back saw something, the person that hit the car in front saw something a little differently, and the car on the side that pulled over to testify to the police saw it slightly differently, perhaps a blend of both stories. The point is, if the time is taken to view situations from different angles, there would be less stress and anxiety. Because the angle it would be viewed from would be a thousand-foot view. The whole picture would be clearer.

The problems I face today, will not matter ultimately, because I am not taking any of these materials with me to Heaven. Thus, stand back, breathe, and look at everything from the current physical view, from an outsider’s view, and most importantly from Jesus’ view. Does it matter? Will it affect the future? What should the proper response be? Lately, my response has been “God will work it out or give me the answer as to how to handle this.” Or “I have been through something similar; this is how I will get through this.” It’s important to remember, as long as God is present, there is nothing to fear or worry about! Let Him do what He does: work it all out in favor.