See the Big Picture

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See the Big Picture

For as he thinks in his heart, so is he. Proverbs 23:7

When you focus excessively on the negative elements of a certain situation and overlook the good aspects, you are "filtering out" the positive and exaggerating the negative. Very few situations are 100 percent negative; most of the time, you can find something good in every circumstance, even if you have to be really diligent about it.

Let's say you are a mom with young children. Your four-year-old colors on the walls, cuts holes in his new pants, kicks his sister, and spills grape juice all over your freshly cleaned carpet. Let's also say he finally apologizes to his sister without being reminded, confesses to cutting his pants instead of saying, "The dog did it," makes an attempt to clean his room, and says you are the best mom in the whole world. To say he was absolutely horrible all day long and forget about his good moments would be filtering out the good, and it would leave your mind with nothing but negative thoughts. Though there certainly would have been some negatives about that day, it had its positive experiences, too.

I can't emphasize too strongly how important it is that you resist the temptation to characterize something as totally negative or to focus excessively on negative aspects of a situation. Look at the situation as a whole and find something positive about it.

When you're constantly focusing on the negative, you'll find it very difficult to trust that things will get better. But when you choose to find the positive things in even your worst challenges, you'll never run out of hope or the ability to put your trust in God.

Trust in Him What is the most negative situation in your life? Now, list three positive things about it or other aspects of your life. When you do, you'll find a fresh source of hope and a new ability to trust.

From the book Trusting God Day by Day by Joyce Meyer.