What You Don't See in the Picture

This picture looks peaceful. But, it doesn't tell the whole story.

I snapped this picture Monday morning. It was almost comical how perfect the photo looked compared to reality.

As cars passed by our house, I caught myself thinking, “To anyone driving by, this

probably looks like the perfect morning.

Perception vs. Reality.

It may have looked perfect, but the reality was far from it.

Listen, I love my kids fiercely and would do anything for them. I’d jump into a pit of tree

frogs, I’d jump into the ocean in the dark, and I’d even eat deviled eggs for them. But loving

them deeply doesn't mean I always have the patience and grace motherhood requires. And that morning I had already run out of both.

You wouldn’t know by looking at this picture that I had already lost my temper that

morning. Big time. You wouldn’t see that I had already fallen to my knees asking

forgiveness. Because in that moment, I knew I couldn't do it in my own strength.

All you would see is a peaceful snapshot of kids doing school outside on a beautiful morning.

Maybe you’d see mom on the porch swing and think, “wow she’s got it made in the shade.”

In reality she was praying for wisdom and endurance.

Maybe the people driving by really did think it looked like the perfect morning.

But they only saw a moment.

And that’s the thing about perception.

So much of what we see in life works the same way. What we see on Facebook or other

social media are still shots. Snapshots of a moment frozen in time. A smiling family. A tidy

house. A peaceful morning. A successful ministry. A perfect photo.

But those pictures aren’t the full story. They are just a frame.

Real life is everything that happened before and after the picture was taken.

Sometimes we see those snapshots and quietly start building standards in our minds. We

decide what motherhood should look like, what patience should look like, what a peaceful

home or successful ministry should look like.

But those standards were never meant to come from social media or the world around us.

Our standard is Christ.

1 Samuel 16:7 “The Lord does not see as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.”

People see pictures. God sees the whole story.

The cars driving by our house that morning probably did see a peaceful moment. But it

wasn’t the whole story.

And most of the time, when we look at other people’s lives, we’re not seeing the whole story

either.

So instead of measuring life by what looks good to the world, we should be far more concerned with what is pleasing to the Lord. And thankfully, the One who sees our hearts is also the One who gives us the grace to keep growing.