Perspective
Perspective: a way of regarding situations, facts, etc., and judging their relative importance.
Perspective is a really interesting thing. Interesting in that the same thing can be viewed by multiple people and each individual can pull from it a perspective completely different from everyone else’s. People view situations from their perch bringing to the party their opinions born from their life experiences, their upbringing, their hurts, etc. Perspectives can shift or change based on how often we do…at least this has been my experience.
Two major life changes turned my life upside down altering my perspective on a lot of things. The first occurred in 1996 when I made the decision to make Christ the Lord over all that pertained to me (aka, I was born again or “saved” ) and the second came shortly thereafter when my children were born.
Having kids has opened my eyes to my perspective on things, especially in light of my desire to live a life pleasing to the Lord. It’s been a process to put away the old patterns of thinking, behaving, relating, remembering…a process which has gotten easier with time as I have decreased and Christ in me has increased. I find myself making a concerted effort to check myself when I sense that I have or am about to “color outside the lines.” I bite my tongue and catch myself before I slip into moments of past learned behavior, always choosing to do better since I know better and my kiddies deserve better. So do I deny my past experiences – the hurts which have formed the person I am or the one I was? No, I simply choose to not share my perspective so as to not alter theirs. My memories or past hurts have dimmed quite a bit, replaced by the light of Him in me causing me to see myself, my circumstances and those around me in a more positive, loving, embracing, forgiving, compassionate light. I see me as He sees me making my perspective a lot more positive which benefits me and those around me greatly.
“So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life – your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life – and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.” Romans 12:1-2 The Message Bible
Armoured Up 
Romans 12:1-2 is certainly good advice. I like the Amplified version of not being conformed to the world. It says “Don’t let the world squeeze you into its mould”.
The world seems to be getting further and further away from God’s principles, with more and more once intolerable behaviours being accepted. It is so easy for young people, growing up in this changing society, to be squeezed into the world’s mould . . . and for all to be blinded to what is happening.
The answer? It is right there in Romans 12. We surrender our whole life – everything we are, everything we do – to the control of our loving Father God. After all, we KNOW that He only wants the very best for us and that we are far, far, far better off in His control.
We serve an amazing God!
Amen, my sister. No better hands to be in than His! Thank you for stopping by. I love your wisdom and encouragement.