Monday's Musings

What perspective do you view life from?

I've learned in photography that perspective makes a big difference in the shots I take. And I started thinking, the same is true in life.

 
My perspective about life events sure does make a difference in how I look at my life and respond to it.
 
So how does this work? Well, let's look at a common flower. The iris.

They bloom in the spring and only in the spring. They come in waves of beauty. This is how we tend to see them, colorful blooms in the midst of lots of green leaves. This is the normal, or average view of them. And unless they happen to be in our own yard, we often just see them in passing.




 



But what happens if we stop and get a little closer? What if we actually examine them? They are beautiful flowers full of amazing details. Yet, you have to take the time to look for those details.












So how can perspective make a big difference in how we view a common flower? Well, have you seen many pictures of irises with blue sky in the background? Probably not often. Why? Because a photographer has to get down on her hands and knees to get the shot. And sometimes she has to take several shots to get a really good one....



Do you get the drift? Same flower, three different views....

I'll be the first to admit that I often don't stop to think about what's really going on in my life and in my heart. I'm just cruising through, catching glimpses of beauty. Grabbing a bible verse here and there. Or, if things aren't going my way, I may not even catch the beauty.

But sometimes I do stop and focus closer in. I see where God is working in my life. But until I stop, I'm still missing some important details in my life that God wants to teach me.

Sometimes those details are best seen while I'm on my hands and knees, looking up to God.

It may not be my first choice, but when I find myself on my knees, it can provide a pretty unique view of life. 

Have a blessed day and stop to see how God is working in your life.

Mary

Monday's Musings - Doors to Nowhere

I recently visited an old mill.

Something interesting caught my eye.

Doors to nowhere.

When this old building was functioning as a mill, the doors made sense. They probably had stairs that took a worker safely down from the second story of the building to the ground below.

But not any more.

The stairs are long gone.

One misstep out of these doors and you could end up with broken bones.

And there were multiple doors to nowhere.

Mary Denman Photography

But I thought about what it would be like to be on the other side, trying to get out of the building. Using one of these doors would be a bad idea. A really bad idea.

But it would seem okay from the inside since you wouldn't know the stairs were missing.

Then I thought about God and his foresight.

I may see a way that seems good to me. And then I may get frustrated because the way I want to go is blocked.

There may be a really good reason why God blocks my path. He is trying to stop me from making a bad choice or decision.

He will love me nonetheless, but I need to trust him that he is looking out for what's best for me.

And that may come in the form of a locked door.

So when your brain is saying, "I know where I'm going and can get out of this myself," take a deep breath when you find your way blocked.

God may be saving you from a really bad fall.