A Matter of Perspective

Cancer can be a real bummer. If you let it. So can losing a job. Having a financial burden. Being hurt by a close friend. [Add your current situation here.] But we don’t have to let these things get the best of us.

Peter reminded us, for example, that God has given us all things pertaining to life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3). Unless I am missing something, that means that followers of Jesus Christ already have everything we need to live lives that are pleasing to God – and that includes getting through tough days without letting all the bad get the best of us.

It’s a matter of perspective – and I don’t write anything new here. It’s a matter of focusing on the God who is above all things instead of the things that weigh us down and distract us.

We read in the Bible about God’s transcendence and his immanence. He is both far above His creation and, at the same time, intimately involved in His creation. The more we know about God, the more we should praise Him.

This morning I read Psalm 117 . . .

Praise the LORD, all you Gentiles!
Laud Him, all you peoples!
For His merciful kindness is great toward us,
And the truth of the LORD endures forever.
Praise the LORD!

Not only is Psalm 117 the shortest chapter in the Bible, it is also the middle chapter. It is pivotal not only in its position but in its significance. It praises God for His kindness toward all men in His plan for redemption and it praises God for His enduring truth. God will bring to pass all that He has promised.

He promised a Savior to redeem sinful man from his bondage to sin and release him from his sentence of eternal death. This was accomplished when He sent His only Son into the world to live a perfect life and die a horrible death in our place. Because Christ is now risen from the dead, sin and death have been defeated, and we can enter into this promise through faith in Jesus Christ.

Praise the LORD!

May Jesus Christ be praised!