Recently a friend gave me a copy of Michael Hyatt’s Full Focus journal. So I’ve taken the challenge to complete it’s 90-day design.

The journal page for today had a portion of this quote by author John Lubbock:

What we do see depends mainly on what we look for… In the same field the farmer will notice the crop, the geologists the fossils, botanists the flowers, artists the colouring, sportmen the cover for the game. Though we may all look at the same things, it does not all follow that we should see them.”

― John Lubbock, The Beauties of Nature and the Wonders of the World We Live in

I instantly narrowed that down to this thought: We see what we look for.

How we view what we see is very dependent on what we are looking for. For example, when we read current events or listen to the news, we have biases that filter what we read and hear. How often do we evaluate those filters? How often do we assess if those filters really are ours or are they residual from other influences? Do we ever alter what we are looking for?

As a suggestion, here is a list that I started in my journal to illustrate what I mean. As you read it, consider how such a list in your journal would read.

• We see God when we look for him
• We see enemies when we look for them
• We see offense when we look for it
• We see opportunity when we look for it
• We see solutions when we look for them
• We see danger when we look for it
• We see rejection when we look for it
• We see grace when we look for it
• We see humility when we look for it
• We see strength when we look for it
• We see courage when we look for it
• We see unity when we look for it
• We see love when we look for it

What are you looking for today? This week? This holiday season?