What you see is what you get...

        God spoke to me today about my "gift of discernment." By nature, I tend to see more wrong than I do right. Trust me, when it comes to my church, don't worry about me getting the big head about all that God's doing. I often see more wrong than I do right! Not because it's wrong, but because that's what I naturally see! The truth is that we see what we're looking for. Ever gotten a new car and suddenly realized EVERYONE ELSE has one? Why? Because all of a sudden that's what we're looking for!
        This truth applies to our attitude towards life, our work, our ministry, our family, and any other area of our lives. What we see is what we're looking for. What we see is what we'll get. If we see a terrible spouse, guess what? If we see everything that's wrong at work, guess what? If we're looking for the faults in someone, guess what we'll find? If we're looking for something wrong in the church, guess what we'll find? We see what we're looking for, and then what we see is what we get.
        So what do we do about this? Change what we're looking for. Look for the good. That's what God did when He sent Jesus. He didn't just see sin. He saw children worth dying for. When Jesus picked the twelve disciples, there was plenty that Jesus could've seen WRONG with them. What did Jesus see? Potential. No one else saw it in them. What did Jesus see when He looked at Jerusalem? He said: "I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest" (Jn. 4:35). What did Jesus see when He looked at people? Potential! Want to be like Jesus? Stop seeing everything wrong with everything and everyone. Start seeing potential . Start seeing the good in people. You may not have needed to hear this today, but I sure did. Thanks, God...

Comments

[Susanne]

Thanks so much for this post Shawn. I have also been told I have the gift of discernment, and I do tend to see the glass half empty a lot. The most negative attitudes though, tend to be pointed towards ME! I am constantly seeing all the things wrong with my life, my walk, my attitudes, and yet...Christ calls me to get my eyes OFF of myself, and ON to HIM and to the things that matter to HIM. This was a great reminder for me. Thanks, again!