The other week, during one of our small group classes, we were doing an exercise that involved lying on the ground with one foot on a Bosu ball. A Bosu ball is a half-dome—flat on one side and inflated on the other.
One of the ladies was doing the exercise and commented that the ball was moving. The more she did the exercise, the farther away the ball moved.
Here’s the thing…
The ball has no way of moving unless a force is applied to it.
Without realizing it, every time she pushed off the ball, she was the one moving it—but from her perspective, it felt like the ball was moving on its own.
That got me thinking.
I wonder if that’s how many of us view the issues in our lives.
Sometimes we believe negative things are just happening to us—like they’re moving on their own, caused by something or someone else… but certainly not us.
But what if we’re the force?
What if, without realizing it, we’re the ones applying pressure in ways that keep pushing the problem further away… or making it worse?
When I looked at her from above, I could clearly see what was happening. I could see that she was the one moving the ball.
But from where she was, she couldn’t see what I saw.
And that’s how it is in our own lives.
Sometimes we don’t have the right perspective.
Sometimes we’re too close to the situation to see clearly.
Which means we have to pause… step back… and look again.
From a different angle.
From a different perspective.
My challenge to each of us is to ask the question:
Is there a force causing the issues in my life… and am I that force?
We have to continually reflect. We have to stay self-aware. We have to be willing to check our perspective—because sometimes it’s off.
And when it is, we need to change our position so we can see more clearly.
Because the real question is this:
Is the force external…
Or is it internal?