Perceptions: What You Want To See

One of my very fondest memories is the night I received my marriage proposal. It is such a romantic memory. Bradley had planned to propose to me on New Year’s Eve at the stroke of midnight.

We had attended a Sunday School Class Singles Party that evening. About a quarter to midnight, he told me he would like to go for a walk outside. We left the party we were at and he led me across the street to a small creek, surrounded by a grassy area, and trees. As midnight was quickly approaching my boyfriend began to profess his love for me. He was so nervous, and reminded me of a kid on his first date. It was so sweet. He bent down on one knee and asked me to be his wife, and I accepted. There was music playing in the background, we were standing under a moonlit sky, and right at the stroke of midnight fireworks began to go off. No, this was not my imagination.

However, my sweet husband was also not quite that romantic. You see the creek we were standing in was really a drainage creek; the music came from a  car that drove by that had music blaring, and the fireworks – they were real – but what else do you expect from a New Year’s Celebration?

You see, since I was a little girl I dreamed of a prince charming whisking me off to happily ever after. Okay, not quite so dramatically. Even right after he proposed I told him what my perception was – giving him much more credit than he actually planned. But that is the story of my engagement.

Perception is a funny thing.

Do you perceive things that are not quite what was meant? It is easy to change things to mean whatever you want, but, it is not always the right thing to do. For instance, sometimes it is really easy to want the Bible to say what makes life easier for you. But, in reality, maybe it should not be interpreted that way. Maybe it is just an excuse to make something okay that you struggle with.

But they delight in the law of the Lord,
      meditating on it day and night. Psalm 1:2