“There he came to a cave, where he spent the night. But the LORD said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” Elijah replied, “I have zealously served the LORD God Almighty. But the people of Israel have broken their covenant with you, torn down your altars, and killed every one of your prophets. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me, too.”” (1 Kings 19:9–10, NLT)
Every now and then, it’s a good idea to back away and look at the bigger picture. If you are constantly dealing with little problems, it may be difficult to see the causes behind the problems. If you focus all your attention on little annoyances, you might not be able to see the progress in your work. There is such a thing as “proximity blindness”; it is when you can’t see the forest for the trees. When you have proximity blindness, what you need is to back away and seek a broader perspective. Look at things from God’s point of view. See things from a better vantage point. When you are too focused on the details in a situation, you might not be able to see the bigger picture to really understand what is going on around you.
“In December 1903, after many attempts, the Wright brothers were successful in getting their "flying machine" off the ground. Thrilled, they telegraphed this message to their sister Katherine: "We have actually flown 120 feet. Will be home for Christmas." Katherine hurried to the editor of the local newspaper and showed him the message. He glanced at it and said, "How nice. The boys will be home for Christmas." He totally missed the big news--man had flown!” (“Daily Bread”, December 23, 1991).
In the scripture for today, Elijah came to a cave. He was fleeing from King Ahab. As he entered the cave, Elijah was a spent man. He was down. He was depressed. All he could focus on was that the King and Queen wanted to kill him, he was fleeing for his life (1 Kings 19:10), the people weren’t listening to his preaching (1 Kings 19:9), God’s altars were being desecrated, and prophets were dying for the faith. All these rejections laid heavily on Elijah’s heart. Each downturn in the spiritual life of Israel took its toll. Elijah was just the shell of a man. He wanted to give up. Elijah was missing the big picture.
In the months previous to entering that cave, God had done some spectacular things through Elijah. The prophets of Baal were defeated. The King and Queen were given clear messages of God’s sovereignty. The people of Israel had rebuilt the altar of the Lord that had been torn down. God’s word was being proclaimed throughout the land. By the hand of Elijah, a child was even raised from the dead! In the previous few days before entering that cave, Elijah was fed by angels not once, but twice! Over and over, God worked in and around Elijah. Still, all that Elijah could see were the negatives, the problems, the annoyances, the threats, and the challenges.
God met Elijah there at the cave. God would not let him stew in his depression. God told Elijah to get back to work. God gave Elijah a new perspective. God mentioned that seven thousand men had remained pure and faithful to God. Those seven thousand would join him in reigniting faith in God throughout the land. Added to that, God had raised up Elisha to extend Elijah’s ministry. God was doing amazing things. It was just difficult for Elijah to see it! He couldn’t see the forest for the trees!
If a business owner gets bogged down by day-to-day challenges, she may not be able to muster a good business plan for the future. If a pastor is overburdened by immediate needs, he may lose the ability to see all that God is doing in the congregation. If a parent focuses on all that a child cannot do, she may miss the amazing things a child has learned. When you deal with a bunch of small annoyances, you may lose the ability to perceive the progress in your situation.
Spiritually, it is common to lose your perspective as well. If you have a sick child, a friend with cancer, a mother-in-law who needs some work in her kitchen, two presents to buy before Christmas, the doorbell ringing with a delivery, the dog next door barking at odd hours, and so much more, you might find yourself too harried to pray. If you let too many annoyances get to you, soon your mind won’t settle enough for you to center your thoughts on God. If you focus your attention for too long on your health problems or worries or insecurities, you might just overlook the person who needs you in that moment. If you talk about yourself too much, a friend might not share with you a deep hurt or pain.
Are you one to get caught up in the little things? Do you wear yourself out focusing on little annoyances? Even great people of the Bible like Elijah made the same mistake. Will you make God straighten you out, or will you be able to grasp the bigger picture on your own?
“In December 1903, after many attempts, the Wright brothers were successful in getting their "flying machine" off the ground. Thrilled, they telegraphed this message to their sister Katherine: "We have actually flown 120 feet. Will be home for Christmas." Katherine hurried to the editor of the local newspaper and showed him the message. He glanced at it and said, "How nice. The boys will be home for Christmas." He totally missed the big news--man had flown!” (“Daily Bread”, December 23, 1991).
In the scripture for today, Elijah came to a cave. He was fleeing from King Ahab. As he entered the cave, Elijah was a spent man. He was down. He was depressed. All he could focus on was that the King and Queen wanted to kill him, he was fleeing for his life (1 Kings 19:10), the people weren’t listening to his preaching (1 Kings 19:9), God’s altars were being desecrated, and prophets were dying for the faith. All these rejections laid heavily on Elijah’s heart. Each downturn in the spiritual life of Israel took its toll. Elijah was just the shell of a man. He wanted to give up. Elijah was missing the big picture.
In the months previous to entering that cave, God had done some spectacular things through Elijah. The prophets of Baal were defeated. The King and Queen were given clear messages of God’s sovereignty. The people of Israel had rebuilt the altar of the Lord that had been torn down. God’s word was being proclaimed throughout the land. By the hand of Elijah, a child was even raised from the dead! In the previous few days before entering that cave, Elijah was fed by angels not once, but twice! Over and over, God worked in and around Elijah. Still, all that Elijah could see were the negatives, the problems, the annoyances, the threats, and the challenges.
God met Elijah there at the cave. God would not let him stew in his depression. God told Elijah to get back to work. God gave Elijah a new perspective. God mentioned that seven thousand men had remained pure and faithful to God. Those seven thousand would join him in reigniting faith in God throughout the land. Added to that, God had raised up Elisha to extend Elijah’s ministry. God was doing amazing things. It was just difficult for Elijah to see it! He couldn’t see the forest for the trees!
If a business owner gets bogged down by day-to-day challenges, she may not be able to muster a good business plan for the future. If a pastor is overburdened by immediate needs, he may lose the ability to see all that God is doing in the congregation. If a parent focuses on all that a child cannot do, she may miss the amazing things a child has learned. When you deal with a bunch of small annoyances, you may lose the ability to perceive the progress in your situation.
Spiritually, it is common to lose your perspective as well. If you have a sick child, a friend with cancer, a mother-in-law who needs some work in her kitchen, two presents to buy before Christmas, the doorbell ringing with a delivery, the dog next door barking at odd hours, and so much more, you might find yourself too harried to pray. If you let too many annoyances get to you, soon your mind won’t settle enough for you to center your thoughts on God. If you focus your attention for too long on your health problems or worries or insecurities, you might just overlook the person who needs you in that moment. If you talk about yourself too much, a friend might not share with you a deep hurt or pain.
Are you one to get caught up in the little things? Do you wear yourself out focusing on little annoyances? Even great people of the Bible like Elijah made the same mistake. Will you make God straighten you out, or will you be able to grasp the bigger picture on your own?