An Outlook of Looking Out

The pictures above were taken within just a few minutes of each other, but the difference between the two is remarkable.

As I watched in awe that cold January morning the wind suddenly and violently blew dust across the painted sky transforming it from pastel hues of blue, pink, and yellow to a dusky orange.

I was amazed by how quickly the darkness of the dirt flying through the air overwhelmed the brilliant light of the sunrise and changed my view.

It seemed to happen in the blink of an eye.

And it reminded me of how quickly my outlook on life can change in response to the dark circumstances swirling around me.

Tragedy strikes too close to home.

Sickness attacks the ones I love.

I find myself walking in the shadow of death.

And my perspective changes with the wind.

Most often, I allow the dust of life to overwhelm my mind and taint my outlook with negativity and doubt. I find myself tumbling from a mountaintop of peace and contentment to valley of discouragement and despair in the blink of an eye.

But it doesn't always happen that way.

Sometimes the darkness twirling around me opens my eyes to the extraordinary beauty in my everyday life and I find myself overwhelmed with gratitude for the simple things that I tend to take for granted.

I've noticed that when difficulities blow into my life, my perspective seems to be affected most dramatically by whether I am looking inward or outward in the midst of the storm.

When I allow the dusty circumstances of life, to block my view turning my eyes back towards myself, I get lost in a whirlwind of negativity. When my life's focus is myself, I spiral downward into a gloomy pit of bitterness and self-pity, and my outlook on life is colored with dread.

But, when I turn my eyes toward those around me weathering their own dreadful storms, I'm overwhelmed by a selfless hope and an immense desire to do all that I can do to ease their struggles. When my life's focus is the need of others, I'm filled with gratitude for the many blessings in my life, and my perspective is brightened by love.

Our outlook on life is determined by how far outward we're looking in a given moment.

The further we gaze into the world around us, the brighter our view will be.

There's beauty in life even when darkness threatens to snuff out the sunlight. And we see that beauty most clearly when we take our eyes off of ourselves and look out.

Toward loved ones dealing with worse circumstances than our own.

Toward friends enduring heartbreak that we can barely begin imagine.

Toward a world in desperate need of the love of Christ.

We can change our outlook on life in an instant, if we'll remember to look out, past ourselves, toward those around us.