Perspectives: Weather or Not
When I traveled to El Paso during the first week of December, I figured I would pack light. I know they have relatively mild winters and it would be my last opportunity to enjoy the sun before returning to the cold, frozen tundra of Ohio. I wore only a sweatshirt to the Toledo Airport; my plan being once I arrived at the airport I would be inside thereafter until stepping out into the warm Texas sun.
You have heard the quote, “The best way to get God to laugh is to tell him we have a plan.”
Snow started falling as the wheels of my plane landed at my destination. I looked out the window in amazement, wondering what sort of fool would only pack short sleeve shirts for such weather. The locals told me it snows once every three to four years, yet it snowed three times in the same week while I was there. They should be good for the next decade now.
The three times it snowed were all in the evening or early morning hours, as during the day the temperatures did climb into the high forties or low fifties. For me, a solid Ohioan for most of my life, these temperatures were tolerable with short sleeves, but the locals were literally bundled up and freezing. This struck me as kind of funny as the different perspectives clashed with the weather.
When you think about it, our weather perspective is funny no matter where we live. In Ohio, a sixty-degree day in July is freezing, although extremely warm in February. How can the same temperature be so different? The answer is in our perspective.
The same can be said when we view a moment when Jesus was visiting with some friends. As recorded in Luke 10:38-42, we find two sisters with differing perspectives of the same event.
As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made.
She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”
“Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”
As many times as I have read this passage, this must be the first time I truly appreciated the contrasting perspectives and applied them to my life. Mary and Martha were both spending time with Jesus in two different ways, one giving her entire concentration and focus, the other distracted with things to do.
When I consider the times I have spent with Jesus, I know I look back on my best experiences being when I could give Him my complete concentration, focus, and attention. This may be prayer time, meditation, reading Scripture, worship, or just resting, but my focus is on Him and Him alone.
The above passage is a reminder to me to seek out those times, plan for those times, and be protective over the time I have scheduled – the pressures of the world will always be there, ready to steal away these precious moments. I can always be distracted like Martha.
How about you? Are you tough enough to plan some time with Jesus and gain a new perspective?
Glenn Sasscer
www.glennsasscer.com
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