Seeing the world from a new perspective

Written by Serena Wang, translated by Angela Leung

In the book Take a Snail out for a Walk, author Chiang wrote that God gave him a responsibility to take a snail out for a walk. The snail walked so slowly that he could not tolerate it. He complained and did not like the snail. But then he smelled the fragrance of the flowers, he heard the birds sing and the insects buzz. He got a chance to look at the sky and see the stars. He realized that his perspective was wrong. God did not give him the task of taking the snail out for a walk; God told the snail to take Chiang for a walk.

Walking my own snail

Often I am so busy that I don’t have time to see the stars, or enjoy the birds or flowers around me. However, God gave me a husband who works and responds as slowly as a snail. My husband is a detailed-oriented person. He thinks carefully before he makes any decision, so he responds and works very slowly. His character is so different from mine that I always feel that we walk with one of our feet tied together, like a three-legged race. My nickname is “octopus” because I am a multi-tasker.   I am proud of my ability to do many things at once, but I am tied to a husband who focuses on one thing at a time.

It is tough for me to adjust to my husband’s rhythm which seems so slow to me. It can be easy for me to get frustrated and want him to hurry up.   But I need to learn to slow down and to adjust to his tempo. When I walk slowly with him, I begin to think about my life and evaluate where I am going. He reminds me to take the time to make sure that I know what I am doing. I need his perspective to balance my own.  Together, we make an excellent team.

Many of us have lives that feel like they are spiraling out of control. There is a struggle to find balance while juggling careers, expectations and responsibilities.  Women are involved in maintaining relationships, managing a household and staying on top of fast-paced changes. A change of pace can make all the difference.  My pace is neither better nor worse than my husband’s, it’s just different.  Together we balance each other out.  Who are the people in your life that give your pace balance?  Are there family members, friends or co-workers who can lend a new perspective?

Live differently with different points of view

In our life, we need to make lots of decisions. We need to know how to analyze and evaluate an issue with different points of view before we make final decision. Fears and uncertainty will be gone if we have confidence in our plan. Maybe God has also arranged a snail for you. By taking your snail out for a walk, you get a chance to re-arrange you emotions.  Don’t get frustrated when the pace seems too slow.  Open up your eyes to look at things differently, and live differently.

Dear friends, God loves you. He wants you to live with hope and strength. He can help you to look at you life and your future from different points of view. Do you want to make a change in your life? Let God lead you. God cares deeply about you and wants to give you the strength you need to face your circumstances and the hope to face the future. If you are feeling alone or overwhelmed, it doesn’t have to be that way. God loves you and wants you to have a relationship with Him. You can have the love and acceptance you are looking for in a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

You can receive Christ right now by faith through prayer. Praying is simply talking to God. God knows your heart and is not so concerned with your words as He is with the attitude of your heart. Here’s a suggested prayer:

Lord Jesus, I want to know you personally. Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life to you and ask you to come in as my Saviour and Lord. Take control of my life. Thank you for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. Make me the kind of woman you want me to be.

If this prayer expresses the desire of your heart, pray it right now and Christ will come into your life as He promised. If you invited Jesus Christ into your life, thank God often that He is in your life, that He will never leave you and that you have eternal life. As you learn more about your relationship with God, and how much He loves you, you’ll experience life to the fullest.

TweetEmailPrint