perspective.

This summer, our family went to the beach for vacation. I find any stress that I once had seems to just roll off like the waves hitting the sand and then falling back into the ocean. It truly is my happy place!

Anytime I’m at the beach, and I see a seashell, I can’t help myself! I always pick it up. Our first day of vacation, we made our way to the beach with hopes of finding lots of seashells. We walked up and down the shore line, and as we searched and searched, we came home with a handful of tiny fragments of shells. We were a little disappointed, but also happy to have at least something. The next day we went to the beach again and the shells seemed to be a little bit bigger. So we collected all that we could find and couldn’t help but think why would we have picked up the small fragments of the shells yesterday.
The third day, we learned of a different beach that was a little further down the shore. So, we went to check it out. And do you know what we saw? Shells that were even bigger! We quickly started questioning why we picked up the shells from yesterday. They seemed small now.

I feel like we walked for miles picking up those shells. I even grabbed the hem of my shirt, lifting it up so it could act like a bucket for all of the shells. That shirt will probably never be the same after that day!

As we returned to our air b&b, we all felt proud of all of the shells we had found! Until that evening. The kind and thoughtful owner of the home reached out and said she had gone to the beach early that morning and gathered shells. She had a box full and told us to help ourselves.

I will never forget when we looked inside that box. HUGE shells. So big and gorgeous that they looked fake. As we stood with our mouths opened wide in awe, we began to pick out a few of the beautiful shells.

When we began packing our bags to prepare for our return home, we had to decide what shells to take with us. The decision was easy. We packed the biggest and prettiest shells.

But, it got me thinking. Life is similar to these shells. It’s about perspective. There will always be bigger, brighter, and shinier things. And it’s easy for things to lose their luster.

It takes us pausing and seeing the beauty in all things and people.
I looked at the first small fragment of the shell and thought, “you’re tough. Even though you have been wounded, you have still decided to make an appearance to the world to see you.”

And then I looked at the next shell from the second day and thought, “you’re doing your thing! Even though there are other shells out there that seem to have it together more than you, you know you still deserve to be seen and appreciated.”

And then I finally took a look at the largest, “all together”, shell. I wondered if the outside matched what was going on, on the inside. Even though I packed those shells, did I miss out on the others that also tell a story and have value?

You might be thinking, “Courtney, what in the world are you talking about? They’re just shells!”
The bottom line is this: having perspective is important when doing life. Your point of view of someone or something might not be the best one or the most accurate. You might need to climb a little higher in order to gain a clearer perspective and get a better view. This is one way we can see the value and worth in others the best. There is great value when we can look past the exterior and gain God’s perspective.

So, before we dismiss someone or begin to make assumptions, or when we are drawn to the “bigger shell”, remember to ask God to give you His perspective. His point of view is always the best one to have.