Can’t See The Forest For The Trees

Have you ever been so focused on something that you got lost? Not a little lost. Very, very lost – blown off track, so lost you can’t see the forest for the trees?

Deer Trails & Distractions

Life isn’t a portfolio of massive landscapes and big pictures. It’s made up of tiny snippets, sketches, and slides – never the whole story upfront. So we climb from detail to detail, brushing leaves away from our faces, pushing stones from our path, and hopping over tiny streams and sometimes raging rivers like a never-ending hike. But what happens when we are so focused on the next step that we can’t peek over the treeline? Each obstacle we conquer leads to another. Soon, we find we have lost the path we started on, following a dear trail only to get stuck in a bramble bush.

Big Pictures – Tiny Strokes

Countless Bible stories detail the trials and tribulations of people who started on a path but got lost along the way. Some didn’t see the bigger picture until it was revealed to them. Some of them may never have realized the bigger picture because their story was meant to warn others. Often it is only in retrospect that we can see how the big pictures in our lives are painted with the tiny strokes of struggles, missteps, and near misses. I’ve lost count of the times I was afraid I was making a mistake only to realize that there was a reason for it all.

On the other hand, there have been many times I stood still because I was too afraid to trust God’s plan. Then, I would be forced to move by outrageous circumstances beyond my control. Those times have almost always ushered me back to the way I should go.

The Hard Part

The hard part is that when you are lost and can’t see the forest for the trees, the only thing to do is get a different perspective. You have to look up. You have to ask for guidance because sometimes you can’t climb up high enough to see for yourself which direction to choose. You must put your faith in the compass of God and trust that He will lead you through.

Romans 8:28  And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.