The Power of Perspective

THE POWER OF PERSPECTIVE
Different looks at Christ at work in our world

Seeing Christ in various ways can open minds to His majesty and grace…

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THE POWER OF PERSPECTIVE

Most of the time, someone will use their own experiences to share the majesty and love of Christ with others, whether or not the people being shared with know the Lord. There are times, however, when it helps to use someone else’s perspective – or point of view – to get a message across. This is different than just retelling a story about someone else in which you may have been involved and possibly changing names or facts to protect identities. Changing the perspective would be telling events as if you are that person. This can be helpful if you are trying to get the person you want to communicate with to see a situation in detail through another’s eyes and how Christ can be a help to the person you are describing. This would likely be most effective when trying to depict the everyday lives of people suffering from hunger, homelessness, or issues that are physical, emotional, or mental in nature. In order to help someone gain a more compassionate outlook for those needing Christ’s help, this can be an effective way for someone to better understand the issues.

The biggest risk in using a perspective that isn’t yours is a possible lack of authenticity. Even if all the facts are right, if the emotions aren’t properly captured the different perspective will not seem genuine and the receiver won’t connect. Make sure whatever you are saying is genuine, and do not persuade with lies! Also, if you are not clear to the receiver that this is a fictional character representing the kind of people you have encountered on your walk with Christ, the reader can mistake it as being your own experiences (even if the character does have a different name); if they believe incorrectly that the story is about you, become moved by it, and then find out it isn’t about you in any way he or she may feel hurt and not willing to listen to anything else you might have to say.

That’s not to say using your own perspective isn’t without challenges. While it is easier to be sure both facts and emotions are accurate, you also must be sure that you are not blinded too heavily by your own biases. Be open to where a skeptical receiver may challenge you and be willing to go deeper instead of getting defensive and personal; this kind of reaction may also turn someone away from listening further. In the end, it’s about getting someone to better understand Christ in our lives in a meaningful, non-deceptive way.

QUESTIONS AND EXERCISES TO CHALLENGE YOU:

1) Contemplate Proverbs 8 and what it gives us to consider when deciding how to use perspective to convey Christ’s truths.

2) Tell a Bible story from someone else’s perspective based on known details.



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CREATIVE WORDS TO SPREAD THE WORD

Coordinator: Shannon Muir
email: creativewordstospreadtheword@gmail.com

BROCHURE #7
Last revised: April 2008

Brochure text by
Shannon Muir
Original Artwork on Printed Version by
Kevin Paul Shaw Broden

[The above is a modified Internet transcription of the text of a print brochure originally released by Creative The Words to Spread the Word. This transcription released by Creative Words to Spread the Word. All rights reserved.]