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SCRIPTURE: Psalms 121:1-2 “I lift up my eyes to the mountains – where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth.” (NIV)
OBSERVATION: The events that were facing King David when he wrote this Psalm are unknown. Regardless of whether he was facing another battle against the physical enemy, going through a personal struggle or simply reflecting on who the LORD God was to him, we read that King David knew God was his helper.
APPLICATION: The picture accompanying this blog is one that I took during a recent extended stay in hospital. During this time I was reminded of a story of two men who shared a hospital room which had only one window. I recall in that story how only one of these two men could see the view out the window. During daily conversations, the man by the window would describe the view to the other. His descriptions included a colourful picture of the park with a lake filled with ducks, people walking hand in hand around the lake and children playing in the park. Both men enjoyed this interaction which brought joy to their days.
One morning the man farthest from the window woke to find that the other man had passed away during the night. He asked the nurse of he could swap sides of the room to be able to enjoy the view that was so often discussed. Bemused, the nurse agreed. The man soon became disheartened to discover that the view was actually facing a brick wall. The man was advised by the nurse that the other man was blind and assumed that he was sharing his perspective on what he imagined the view would be like.
We are all faced with moments of disappointment in our lives, along with opportunities to control our perspective and influence our atmosphere. Like the blind man in this story, I had the opportunity to bemoan my view from the hospital window. I knew exactly what direction I was looking out at, that I would be able to enjoy the sunrising in my room most mornings, and watching the weather patterns and pedestrians throughout the day. My perspective was, despite why I was there, to make the most of the time I had to stop, rest and count my blessings; to use it as an opportunity to spend much quality time with God. Yes, I missed my family and friends, the freedom and fresh air, but I chose to look to the hills, because I knew my help was and continues to come from God.
PRAYER: Dear God, help me to see life through your perspective, that I may be constantly aware of your presence and help, regardless of my present situation. AMEN
