There is a great story in the Old Testament that demonstrates the importance of looking at your situation from God’s perspective.
Here is the story.
8 Now the king of Syria was at war with Israel. He consulted his advisers, who said, “Invade at such and such a place.” 9 But the prophet sent this message to the king of Israel, “Make sure you don’t pass through this place because Syria is invading there.” 10 So the king of Israel sent a message to the place the prophet had pointed out, warning it to be on its guard. This happened on several occasions. 11 This made the king of Syria upset. So he summoned his advisers and said to them, “One of us must be helping the king of Israel.” 12 One of his advisers said, “No, my master, O king. The prophet Elisha who lives in Israel keeps telling the king of Israel the things you say in your bedroom.” 13 The king ordered, “Go, find out where he is, so I can send some men to capture him.” The king was told, “He is in Dothan.” 14 So he sent horses and chariots there, along with a good-sized army. They arrived during the night and surrounded the city. 15 The prophet’s attendant got up early in the morning. When he went outside there was an army surrounding the city, along with horses and chariots. He said to Elisha, “Oh no, my master! What will we do?” 16 He replied, “Don’t be afraid, for our side outnumbers them.” 17 Then Elisha prayed, “O Lord, open his eyes so he can see.” The Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he saw that the hill was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.
(2 Kings 6:8-17)
The context of this story is that the king of Syria is at war with Israel. He discovers that there is “a spy”! But it turns out that there is a prophet in Israel to whom God reveals the military strategies of Syria, and thus, Israel continues to outmaneuver the Syrians. The prophet’s name is Elisha.
So, the king of Syria orders to capture Elisha and sends a “good-sized” army to the city of Dothan where Elisha is staying! The army surrounds the city at night.
Elisha’s attendant goes out in the morning to discover that they are now surrounded by the enemy. He freaks out.
Calmly, Elisha responds, “Don’t be afraid, for our side outnumbers them.”
What are you talking about, Elisha? We don’t have an army here in Dothan!
What his attendant didn’t see is the spiritual reality. The hill is “full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha” (v. 17).
When you look around your situation, make sure to seek the Lord first, for your spiritual reality may be exactly the opposite of your physical situation.
“O Lord, open my eyes so I can see!”