Let's Zoom Out!

Vicki Medvec, a professor at Northwestern University, did a fascinating research study concerning bronze and silver medalists at the Olympics. She was trying to determine who was the happiest of the two groups and why. She discovered that Bronze medalists were happier than Silver medalists because the silver medalists tended to focus on how close they came to winning gold and didn't...so they weren't satisfied or happy with the silver. Bronze medalists focused on how close they came to not winning a medal at all so they were just happy to have one a metal.

What she really discovered is what students of human nature have known for years: your focus determines your reality. As illogical as it may seem, happiness is not measured by an objective set of circumstances in our lives but by our subjective focus.

A great truth that will radically transform our lives is this: Your internal attitudes are more important than your external circumstances. Think about the original humans in the Garden of Eden. They had paradise given to them. They had access to everything the world could offer, but one thing. Their attention became laser-focused on that one thing and they were discontent about everything else. Think about Daniel and the three Hebrew young men in Babylon. They were in captivity. Babylon is the Biblical representative of everything wrong in the world. Yet they maintained their integrity. What was the difference? Their focus!

All of us know people who can find something good to focus on even when they are experiencing bad circumstances. We also all probably know someone who can find something bad to focus on in spite of all the good their lives..

You see, we tend to see what we’re looking for. Spiritually speaking, there are two basic types of people in the church world: complainers and worshippers. Complainers can always find something to complain about. Worshippers can always find something for which they can give God glory.

A worshipper makes a decision to always praise and worship regardless of their circumstances. This week we are going to be looking at a familiar story in the Bible that illustrates this principle in the lives of two Bible heroes.