So what's your perspective

Have you ever been to Mt Shasta in California?  I took a vacation there the last 2 years, something struck me last year, it has to do with perspective.  As you are nearing Shasta National Park from the south along I-5.  Mt Shasta looms large over the rest of the mountain range you can see it from miles away.  As you climb I-5 past Shasta Lake the peak of Mt. Shasta is not necessarily visible as the other mountains eclipse it's view, but as you pass the lake and round a few corners Mt Shasta comes into clear view, but from this close its not as "large" as it appears from from away it actually seems not much larger than the surrounding peaks.  Its a matter of perspective.  The closer you get to something the different it begins to look.

I have often been challenged to think outside the box and have likewise challenged others to think outside the box as well. The question is how. How do we think outside the box. Especially when the box is of our own making.  I can remember times of prayer where I believe The Lord spoke to me about putting Him in a box and not trusting him or believing him to "show up" if you will.

So what does this have to do with perspective?  Have you ever been inside a box?  They are made of cardboard and aren't see through, depending how large the sides of the box are your perspective of things is extremely limited.  You can't see beyond the walls of the box.
Well if we are only seeing things from inside the box we may be missing something that is literally right outside. Without lifting our heads to see what's on the other side
Now don't get me wrong I tend to be one who is always looking for new ideas or opportunities but at the same time I can "lock" myself into a certain perspective and not see or hear new opportunities.

How is that so. Let me explain  this summer I had a lot of things converge all at once which caused me to take a break and stop to take a breath.   I graduated my oldest 2 from high school I also closed a 70 year old building both on the same weekend. Leading up to both events I found myself just going through the motions moving from one event or activity to the next just to get them done even church fell into this category. And that's not always a good thing.  Church should be a fresh experience where The Lord speaks and we hear and respond.

Well I was feeling quite overwhelmed and needed a break so I took a social sabbatical.  I determined not to see anyone I normally would meet with, switched churches (temporarily) and choose not to participate in any scheduled activity that I didn't need to be at. I was doing this just for a break just to take a rest thinking I would just pick up right where I left off at the end of the month. Well little did I know God had other plans. When we shut down the normal and allow for the unfamiliar our senses are exercised, and God has an opportunity to show up. We can be more receptive to His leading because we are more alert.

So here is a little of what he showed me.

1. When we over schedule our lives we don't leave room for God to speak or the Holy Spirit to interact with us.
2. When we try new things or things out of the ordinary our senses are exercised including hearing and seeing.
3. Gods world is bigger than mine and really there is no such thing as a chance encounter.
4. We may want something different...but without a positive disruption we may not see it.
5. When we try new things we don't know exactly what to expect, thus we are more open to God's movement because we are not mentally planning ahead and taking him out of the equation.

So where does this leave you?  Are you in a rut?  Same place, same thing, etc you know the drill, you follow the same route to work or sit in the same place in church petty much just by memory.  Maybe you need a break from the normal.  A change of scenery.  Different surroundings.  Try it just for a time give it a chance.  It will do you good and who knows God may show up and meet you where you're at, just like he did for me.

Today's Quote

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

I've been thinking lately of the creative process and its impact on me and society.  Creative things, thoughts, and activities inspire me, I've always been intrigued by how a song writer or an artist comes up with their interpretation of a text or subject and how they communicate that element.  Sometimes when I actually stop to listen to the words of songs I'll say wow "I didn't think of it that way" or "that's a unique way to say that" or "that's so true".

It's a new year and a time for making resolutions or in my case setting new goals for the year to come.  Beyond that I always try to set a theme for the year that I try to follow or that I use to inspire me in what I do. Sometimes (actually most times) my theme just comes to me randomly I don't force it (anymore, I used to try).  Sometimes it comes before the year starts other times it comes after the start of the new year and other times I've just carried over the theme from one year to the next.  Well this year I wasn't even thinking about it when it hit me:  Studio, Sanctuary, Suburbia. 

I was pleasantly surprised, I hadn't been thinking about it, nor was I fretting it and it wasn't on my horizon.  I was just sitting there drinking some tea after Christmas and it came to me, and each word made sense and had a particular meaning.  I didn't know the exact meaning but I just knew it fit.  It fits where I'm at right now, and gives me something to go on for the year.  I feel inspired. Because, this year I'm expecting some changes to come my way.  I'm actually forcing some of these changes as a way to get myself out of this rut I seem to have gotten stuck in somewhere along the way.  So the theme just coming to me is in a way a confirmation that I am heading in the right direction.

So, today as I was walking to the garage the thought of creating a "sanctuary" occurred to me after discussing with my wife about cleaning the yard and making some changes to our plants and property.  I realized at that moment that these things don't happen by themselves.  My yard currently is the result of leaving it to it's self for too long, I will have to actively make changes to the yard or it won't happen, I have to purposely make it a place of peace or a "sanctuary" or it will remain an unruly jungle. 

Maybe this is how the artist comes up with their "works of art" part inspiration part active participation, and it is probably the moments of inspiration that carries them through the hours of perspiration.  So, I'm inspired to pick up some tools and get started, for now I'm going to focus on reshaping my garage into a studio and once Spring begins to kick in I'll start the process on the yard.  But tonight while drinking a cup of tea I'm going to get started writing down some goals for this coming year while I leave you with this thought:

"When we form good resolutions, God gives us every opportunity of carrying them out"

-St. Chrysostom