CLEOEJACKSONIII.COM
  • My Home Page
  • My Life and Ministry
  • My Ongoing Thoughts
  • My Favorite Bible Verses
  • My Favorite Stories
  • My Favorite Jokes
  • My Favorite Quotations
  • My Favorite Web Links
  • My Contact Info
"Helping Others Communicate"

A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE ON LIFE

9/24/2014

 
I recently received an e-mail from a friend titled “3200 Years in One Photo”.  Needless to say, with my love of history, I was more than intrigued by the title.  Turns out, it was about a very special tree.  The e-mail read:

Picture
          THE PRESIDENT

“
Not every tree has a nickname, but 'The President' has earned it. This giant sequoia stands at 247 feet tall, and is estimated to be over 3,200 years old.  Imagine, this tree was already 1200 years old when Jesus walked the earth.


The trunk of the president measures at 27 feet across, with 2 BILLION needles from base to top.  Because
of its unbelievable size, this tree has never been photographed  in its entirety.  Until now. 
 

A team of National Geographic photographers have worked along with scientists to try and create the first photo that shows the president
in all its glory. 



They had to climb the tree with pulleys and  levers, and took thousands of photos.  Of those, they selected 126 and stitched them together, to get this portrait of the president. Incredible, is it not?”


As I read this and looked at the picture, I was reminded that, just as it is hard to see a 247 feet tall tree all at once, so is it hard to see one’s life in its entirety.  Like the climbers upon the tree, we usually only see a small portion of life at a time.  And when we are viewing it, the current perspective all but obscures the rest of it.

A closer inspection of the picture shows that there are at least three tiny men at various points along the tree.  One is at the bottom looking up.  Another is near the halfway point.  Still another stands near the top looking down.  No doubt they all have very different perspectives on the tree.

Yet from our vantage point in the photo, we see, not a limited perspective like each of these, but the whole thing.  And surely this is how God views our lives.  We see them only in small snippets each passing day as they unfold.  He sees them in their entirety - from beginning to end, from start to finish, from bottom to top.

My strong suspicion is that if we could learn to see things from God’s perspective, then much of the stress and worry that consumes us throughout our lives would soon dissipate.  This is because we would know, just as He does, exactly what the next little bit of the journey holds.  More importantly, we would be able to see exactly where it will all end up.

Alas, we usually have no such perspective.  But we know the One who does!  And we go forward each and every day in complete confidence that the One who guides us along our way knows exactly how things will turn out.  And we anticipate with great excitement the glorious view that will be ours when we one day conclude our journey and arrive up there!

The words of the Psalmist (39:4-5 and 23:) seem a fitting conclusion to my thoughts here: 

“Show me, Lord, my life’s end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting my life is.  You have made my days a mere handbreadth; the span of my years is as nothing before you.” “Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and (then) I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”

NOTE:  A Google search revealed several news stories dating from February 26, 2014 with the same essential information and pictures as reported in the e-mail.  I conclude that this was the basis of the e-mail.   

Example: 
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2568138/Ext
raordinary-length-shot-President-one-largest-trees-Earth.html
.

Comments are closed.

    Cleo E. Jackson, III

    Occasionally I will add
    a few thoughts to my blog. If you find them inspirational, I will be
    honored.

    Archives

    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    March 2011
    February 2011
    January 2011
    December 2010
    November 2010
    October 2010
    September 2010
    August 2010
    July 2010
    June 2010
    May 2010
    March 2010
    February 2010

    Categories

    All