Seeing Through the Lens of God

A Malay saying goes “katak bawah tempurung” (a frog under a coconut shell) – it describes one who lives in his own world, unaware of the surroundings around him – the coconut shell is his world. His vision and perspective are limited to that coconut shell. When someone calls another “katak bawah tempurung” it means that this person is outdated and refuses to learn new things or be open to different perspectives.

Hold on – we cannot exactly blame the frog because his vision is indeed limited! I think more appropriately described should be a frog under a glass, which is clear and transparent – he has a full view of the world outside, yet is unwilling to change his ways and perspectives; rather, he chooses to stay limited by the glass he is sheltering under.

Drawing the same analogy, could we too sometimes allow our circumstances to limit our perspectives? Could it be old habits, stubbornness, pride, or simply just that we are not bothered? If so, in actual fact, we are shortchanging ourselves. We are limiting our potential.

We therefore cannot be too rigid or closed minded. Always see things from different angles. Beyond seeing through our eyes of understanding, is seeing through the lens of God. How? Develop a relationship with God by regular communion with Him. He changes the way we think, how we see things, how we approach a problem.

A famous preacher, Charles Spurgeon once said this: “The way you view God will eventually show up in the way you live your life”.

If we view God as a Healer, a God of all possibilities, a God who loves us, never leave us nor forsake us THEN our perspective towards life will never be the same! God’s perspective becomes our perspective through the lens of God. We no longer see ourselves as a failure, rejected, unloved – simply because we see ourselves from God’s perspective. Eventually, our entire perspective in life changes!

Seeing God’s perspective is not a one-time event. It is a lifestyle. 2 things I’ve learned personally in growing into maturity are to be sensitive to God and always being prayerful.

1. Be sensitive

Be sensitive to what God is doing in our lives and what He is showing us. He can show us time and time again, yet if we choose to stay under a coconut shell (or a glass, for that matter), we will never be able to see what God is doing despite the numerous occurrences. There is a famous tweet “God is always doing 10,000 things in your life, and you may be aware of 3 of them” – this is very true! It is a choice.

One very good example in the Bible is the children of Israel who wandered 40 years in wilderness. God delivered them out of Egypt, they witnessed the marvelous works of God, yet failed to see what God was doing for them – the Lord went before them in a pillar of cloud in the day and a pillar of fire by night, parted the Red Sea and fought their enemies for them, caused bread to rain from heaven, water to come out of the rock – yet ALL throughout they accused Moses for bringing them out of Egypt to die in the wilderness, in hunger and thirst. In fact, they said they would rather go back to their old life, under bondage of the Egyptians who oppressed them – when in the first place, it was them who cried out in sorrow and God, having heard their cry, delivered them.

Compare the Israelites with Moses’ father-in-law, a Midianite. He did not experience for himself the signs and wonders of God, but had merely heard of them through Moses’ account, yet he recognized it was God! In Exodus 18:8-11 Moses’ father-in-law recognized that God was above them (“them” refers to the Pharaoh and the Egyptians). No matter how powerful the Pharaoh and the Egyptians were, God was still above them – THAT became His perspective of God!

If the Israelites could pause and remember how big their God is, who is more than able to do anything impossible, they would not complain when faced with a problem. They would have seen every challenge from God’s perspective. Instead, they complained. Complaining is the mindset of defeat. When we complain, we acknowledge that the circumstances are against us, and those circumstances are bigger than us. Do not forget that while we may be small, but our God is BIG!

God warns us the danger of hearing but not understanding; seeing but not perceiving – Keep on hearing, but do not understand;

Keep on seeing, but do not perceive.

(Isaiah 6:9 NKJV).

If we refuse to shift our perspectives, no matter what God does, we continue to live in a defeated mindset. However, if we take a moment to reflect, we will be amazed at how involved He is in our lives! We need to always be sensitive to what He is doing and respond to His leading.

2. Be prayerful

The Bible says pray without ceasing. That means to continuously seek God in everything, including His perspectives!

As we read on in Exodus, people began to come before Moses in long queue – they stood before Moses from morning until evening. Moses’ father-in-law asked him what these people came for – to which Moses replied in Exodus 18:15-16:

And Moses said to his father-in-law, “Because the people come to me to inquire of God; when they have a dispute, they come to me and I decide between one person and another, and I make them know the statutes of God and his laws.”

People began to seek God’s perspective in their lives, including when they had disputes among themselves – they looked to God, through Moses, for perspective and solution. Moses judged according to God’s statutes and laws.

How about us? We have the Holy Spirit in us whom God sent as our Helper. Therefore, in everything, pray first! Do not be too quick to jump into conclusion. Living in a world where technology feeds us with unfiltered news and information, we cannot afford to accept the news or a person’s views as it is. It can be just a quick, simple prayer, “God, please show me Your perspective on this matter.” Always pray and discern.

What another person shares with us is through his (her) lens, which may be tainted. Be wise. Always remember there are 2 sides to a coin! Pray, ask God to show us His perspective and how we are to deal with the situation. One thing I have learned is that we should never force our views on another person. Instead, pray for that person and ask God to show him (her) His perspective as well. If God wants us to speak to that person concerning what He has revealed to us, do so with love and tact.

In making personal decisions, what seems good in our eyes may not be in reality be so. Avoid rushing into decisions using our own perspectives – seek God, pray about it and check against Biblical truths. There may be a lot of “noise” telling us what is good, what we should do – but we need to let the voice of God drown out every other noise! Even the most well-meaning friends may not know what is best for us as no one knows what lies ahead, only God does!

Of course, it is wise to ask God for confirmation concerning the things He has revealed to us. This can be through His Word, wise counsel, a deep conviction through a situation or event or other means which He uses to speak to us.

If God has already shown us His perspective, and if we have been prayerful about it – we need to put our faith in God and act upon it. Faith without works is dead.

Reflect What lens are we putting on today?

Do not limit our perspective through the lens of past experience, failures, wounds, or simply stubbornness!

Be open to what God is showing us. In that process, we need to remain humble and teachable, as there will come a time of rebuking, correcting, realigning – it may not be something we can willingly accept, but if we persist on and refuse to put on our old lenses again, we will have our breakthroughs.

Are we willing to take off our own lens, and putting on new lens, that is, the lens of God?

It is a choice we have to make, and a choice we need to stay committed to.

Prayer

Dear Heavenly Father,

Help me to always see through Your lens. Show me Your perspectives in every aspect of my life. Let me not be wise in my own eyes. Instead, open my eyes, that I may see wondrous things from Your law. Holy Spirit, let me be sensitive to Your leading to what God is showing me; and in my weakness, help me to stay prayerful and focused in the Word. In Jesus' most wonderful name I ask and pray, Amen.

By 枝页 (February 28, 2021)