A New Frame of Reference

I can’t believe I’m so crazy about it. 

The Eiffel Tower. 

I’d gotten used to seeing its image everywhere -- from notecards to dish towels to wrapping paper. 

I wondered what was so special about it. I certainly didn’t expect to be so impressed by seeing it in person. 

But the minute I caught a glimpse of it, even from a distance on my first day in Paris, it took my breath away. 

I couldn't wait to get closer to it. To experience the scale of it. When I stood under it, looking up at the ironwork, it was beautiful and remarkable and extraordinary all at the same time. 

I was stunned by its magnificence. And the enormity of it. 

It looks so small from a distance. And it especially looks small on notecards and dish towels and wrapping paper. 

Even though I knew it was one of the world’s tallest structures, I couldn’t imagine the beauty of it from photographs until I experienced it.

As I crisscrossed the city, walking from one tourist attraction to another, every time I saw it peeking through the trees or hovering over a bridge, my heart skipped a beat. 

There it was. 

I took tons of photos of it. From far away. From a boat on the river. From right underneath it. 

During the day with the sun glinting off of it. 

At twilight with a sliver of the moon just visible rising over it. 

Sparkling with white twinkling lights at night. 

I am reluctant to admit it, but I’m in love with the Eiffel Tower. 

Now I’m the one buying the notecards, the dish towels, the wrapping paper. I can’t get enough of the Eiffel Tower. 

My experience changed everything. I stood under its shadow. I was surrounded by the intricate web of its latticework. When I saw the tower in person, it changed how I thought about it. 

I saw God from a new vantage point this year, too. 

In fact, I don't think I would have found myself standing under the Eiffel Tower if I hadn't said yes to looking at things differently. 

I’d always known God but the way I thought about him was transformed. I grasped how I could have a deeper relationship with God. 

To understand how he wanted to work in my life. To discover how he could take my faith and make it stronger, richer, bolder. 

A changed perspective helped me see God in everything and trust that he will bring good from the events and experiences in my life. Even when things don't turn out as I think they should. 

God sees my life much differently than I view my life. He sees above and beyond, deeper and wider than I ever can. 

A verse in Psalms says God is our refuge, like a strong tower against what we’re facing in life. 

I want to stand in the shadow of that tower. In awe of his wisdom. 

His beautiful graciousness. His remarkable faithfulness. His extraordinary mercy. 

I am stunned by his magnificent love for me. And I'm crazy about it.