Roxanne stopped outside the door and turned. “I can’t do this.”

“Yes, you can,” Valerie said. “Come on.” She grabbed Roxanne’s arm and pulled her inside.

The dimly lit room bustled with activity. Children giggled in one corner as a group of climbers were outfitted in another, but it was the wall that caught Roxanne’s attention.

She gasped.

The climbing wall filled the entire side of the room and stretched high to the ceiling. Different shapes plastered the surface. Ropes hung from the top dangling like a spider’s web waiting for its prey.

Roxanne sucked in a breath and crossed her arms. “No way am I climbing that.”

“It’s not as hard as it looks,” her friend said. “Step closer and take another look.”

Roxanne inched forward until she was able to touch the wall. Each shape didn’t lie flat as she originally thought but jutted out making it easier for a climber to clutch and climb.

She turned to Valerie. “You’re right. It looks different close up. Maybe I can do this.”

A few weeks ago I blogged about changing our perspective and taking a step back to see things from a distance. Today, I want to focus on taking a closer look.

Have you ever tried to tackle a big project and immediately started to hyperventilate? Or, are you involved in so much you find it hard to do one activity well? You can’t put your all into it?

Why do we do this to ourselves? Do we think we need to prove something?

As a writer, there are times when the thought of writing a 90,000 word novel paralyzes me. I sit staring at my laptop, waiting for the words to come. Then, I take a breath and start with a chapter. One at a time, breaking it down into smaller chunks.

It’s not as scary that way.

How about when we overtax ourselves? We get involved in too much. Take a glance at what you really want to do and focus on it. The other can wait until this one is finished. Or maybe we need to cut an activity out of our lives in order to concentrate harder.

Take inventory on everything you’re involved in and pray about where God wants you to focus.

Also, when we take a closer look we might see something we missed. Something amazing.

For example, in this picture all you see is an unusual rock formation.

Now, take a closer look.

You see the etchings and different colors in the rock. Also, did you miss the beautiful greenery of the evergreen? Up close, it’s more vibrant. When we get closer our perspective changes. We become more focussed on the smaller things that can turn out to be exactly what we needed to see.

What would happen if we looked closer? We’d get a focussed view and accomplish more. We’d also be able to breathe. 🙂 And we wouldn’t miss what God really wants us to see.

How about it? Move closer for a better look.

Can you share an experience when a daunting task paralyzed you? What did you do? Did it help to look closer? Did you almost miss something amazing because you stood too far away?

“Looking closer can make something beautiful.” – Cynthia Lord