Two friends took a picnic lunch to the beach. They rolled out a blanket and sat down in the sand. One of the friends unpacked the lunch she had brought for them both to eat. She handed her friend a small package of sardines and a can of Vienna sausages. “What are you eating for lunch?” She asked her friend. Puzzled, her friend responded, “you brought us sardines and Vienna sausages.” “Where are you eating lunch?” Again, perplexed by the question, her friend said, “in the sand.”
For several moments, the two friends sat silently eating their lunch watching the sea gulls and listening to the ocean waves crash on the beach. As they began to pack up, the first friend said, “while you ate sardines and Vienna sausages in the sand I dined on surf and turf with an ocean side view.”
It is a matter of perspective. Depending on the angle you and I look at any given situation, our perspective shifts. Our attitudes are often shaped by the way we experience the world around us. Are we sinking in sand or sitting on the beach?
There is no doubt in this COVID time, that the ground beneath our feet feels like quicksand. To be blunt, the disappointments stink as much as a package of sardines left too long in the sun. Anxiety looms over us as we wonder what waves will come crashing down after the election. It is heavy and I can easily assume a posture of doom and gloom if I do not check my perspective.
Jesus told his disciples to build upon the rock so that when the winds blow, the rain falls and the floods of this life come, they will not fall because they are firmly footed on solid ground. However, if they build on the sand, they will be in danger of washing away.
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