“An elevated view expands and broadens our world and draws us out of ourselves.”
Thoughts from daily Bible reading for today – February 21, 2026
But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:31, ESV
Though I hate the turbulence, I love the sheer magic and wonder of flying in an airplane. Looking down on the world from 30,000 feet in the air never ceases to amaze me, even though I’ve flown my entire life. And though the view from the highest point has its own majesty and awe, I think my favorite part may be the takeoff.
Looking out the window from the runway, I see the world from a familiar vantage point. Ground level is my most frequent and common perspective on the world, yet as a plane gets up to speed and begins to climb, my view is transformed within an instant. Where seconds ago I was looking up at the trees and buildings, I now find myself soaring above them at a height that the vast majority of humans throughout history would have deemed impossible.
In my life of faith, my most constant reality and persistent perspective is my own self. I fill my days with my own interests and hobbies, and worry about my future finances or health. This is certainly natural and understandable, but if it’s our only angle, our experience of the world will be limited in ways that are both dangerous and unhealthy.
One of the most important things you can do in your spiritual life is to come up for air. Ask the Spirit to lift your eyes from our obsession with self and instead lift us up to a higher vantage point from which we can see the world from his perspective. An elevated view expands and broadens our world and draws us out of ourselves. When our world expands, we find room for others and see opportunities to love and serve that are simply unknowable from the ground level.
Of course, this is no easy feat! Just like humans cannot fly on their own, we cannot be set free from the sickness of selfishness without the liberating power of the Holy Spirit at work in our midst. Yet if we can learn to humble ourselves and simply ask, he will come to us, lift us on his wings, and we will soar like eagles, liberated from our small-minded myopic view as we discover the exhilarating thrill of living for Christ and his Kingdom.
Prayer
Father, lift our gaze out of ourselves and onto the world around us, that we may be free to join you in the work you are already doing, through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Application
What does it look like for you to “come up for air” in your own life in this current season?
Related Reading
Isaiah 55:9; Ephesians 2:6; Colossians 3:1-2
Worship Resource
The Choir Room feat. Ben Rector: Joy
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