The Elevator of Perspective

 The Elevator of Perspective

By Harold Mawela (From Akasia, Pretoria)

Scripture: "Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things." (Colossians 3:2)

Let us define our terms clearly before we ascend. Perspective is not what you see; it is where you see it from. Prayer is not a phone call to heaven; it is an elevator that transports your entire being mind, will, and emotions—to a higher floor of divine intelligence. Worship is not a song; it is the key that opens the elevator door.

Now, let me take you to a morning not long ago.

I was sitting on my veranda here in Akasia, watching the Pretoria skyline shimmer through the summer haze. The Jacarandas were beginning their purple reign. My phone buzzed incessantly WhatsApp messages from a friend in Mamelodi whose business had collapsed, a news alert about the R600 million security operation ahead of the June 30 protests, and a voice note from a young woman in Soshanguve who had just been retrenched. Her voice cracked: "Pastor Harold, I am standing at the bottom of a mountain. I cannot see the top. I cannot breathe."

I understood her pain. I have stood at that basement level myself. Years ago, when I was consulting in the private sector, a colleague I considered a brother systematically undermined my credibility. He would wait until I left a meeting and reinterpret my words to management. The tension was palpable. I felt the heat in Sandton, the cold shoulder in the corridors. I was stranded on the ground floor of panic, and the mountain of my problem blotted out the sun.

But here is the law I have since learned a law as immutable as gravity, yet as liberating as flight:

Your problem is not defined by its size, but by the floor from which you view it.

Let me illustrate. Imagine, if you will, a tick on the back of a buffalo. That tick believes it is on a mountain. The hair is dense, the terrain is vast, and every movement feels like an earthquake. But the eagle soaring above sees the entire herd moving across the plain. The tick sees a mountain; the eagle sees a brushstroke on a vast canvas. The tick is not wrong about what it experiences. It is wrong about where it is.

The question is not whether your problem is real. The question is: Which elevator are you taking?

The Law of the Ascending Mind

The Scripture declares unequivocally: "Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things". The Greek word phroneite does not mean casual consideration. It means to relish, to set your affections upon, to concentrate all your mental and physical powers upon. It is a deliberate, disciplined act of the will.

Consider the logic:

· Premise 1: What you focus on, you magnify.

· Premise 2: What you magnify, you empower.

· Premise 3: What you empower, you become enslaved to.

· Conclusion: Therefore, to focus on earthly problems is to empower them to enslave you. To focus on heavenly realities is to liberate yourself from the tyranny of the temporary.

A common objection arises: "But Pastor Harold, are you asking me to deny reality? The electricity is off. The rent is due. The marriage is strained. The news is terrifying." I am not asking you to deny reality. I am asking you to redefine it. Denial is pretending the mountain does not exist. Perspective is remembering that you serve the God who speaks to mountains (Mark 11:23).

From the ground level, load-shedding is darkness. From the tenth floor of trust, it is an opportunity to light a candle and pray. From the rooftop of eternity, it is a momentary flicker in the presence of the eternal Light. From the ground level, the June 30 protests are fear. From the tenth floor of faith, they are a call to intercede. From the rooftop of heaven, they are a reminder that no government, no policy, no protest can dethrone the King of Kings.

The Elevator is Always Open

I remember walking through Wonder Park Mall in Akasia not long ago. I saw a woman pushing a trolley, her face etched with worry. Her phone was pressed to her ear, and I caught fragments: "The bank says... I don't know how... what am I going to do?" She was on the ground floor. The mountain was enormous.

But here is the truth that changes everything: The elevator of prayer is always open. The doors never close. The maintenance is already paid for by the blood of Jesus Christ.

You do not need a special key. You do not need a security clearance. You do not need to be "spiritual enough." You simply need to step in. Worship is the button you press. Thanksgiving is the ascent. Scripture is the floor indicator showing you how high you have risen.

Let me give you the practical law:

What you worship, you ascend to. What you worry about, you descend into.

Worry is the elevator going down. Worship is the elevator going up. Every time you choose worship over worry, you press "Penthouse." Every time you choose gratitude over grumbling, you bypass the basement of despair.

The View from the Rooftop

From the rooftop of eternity, everything changes.

That financial crisis? It is a brushstroke teaching you to depend on Jehovah Jireh.

That relationship breakdown? It is a brushstroke teaching you that Jesus is the Bridegroom who never leaves.

That political turmoil? It is a brushstroke on the canvas of God's redemptive history.

That health diagnosis? It is a brushstroke reminding you that your real life is hidden with Christ in God (Colossians 3:3).

I learned this truth in the most painful season of my life. When that colleague betrayed me, I spent weeks on the ground floor, staring at the mountain of my ruined reputation. I complained to God: "Lord, shut his mouth! Remove this obstacle!" But God, in that still small voice that often speaks through the roar of our pain, said: "Harold, I am not removing him. I am using him. He is the waiter at the table I am preparing".

That was a difficult morsel to swallow. But when I took the elevator of worship, I saw what I could not see from the basement: God was not punishing me; He was positioning me. The enemy was not defeating me; he was delivering me to my destiny.

The Call to Ascend

So, what do you do when the problems press in?

First, stop staring at the mountain. The longer you stare, the bigger it grows. The tick on the buffalo thinks it is on a mountain because it has never seen the sky. Lift your eyes.

Second, press the button. Prayer is not complicated. It is simply saying, "Lord, lift me to the rooftop of eternity. Give me Your perspective on every problem I face today."

Third, worship while you wait. The elevator does not always move instantly. Sometimes you stand in the lobby, and the doors seem stuck. But worship is the force that opens them. Sing. Thank. Praise. Even when especially when you do not feel like it.

Fourth, look down from above. From the rooftop, your problem is not eliminated; it is repositioned. It is no longer a mountain blocking your path; it is a stepping stone on your journey. It is no longer a weapon against you; it is a tool in the hands of the Master Craftsman.

The Final Law

Let me leave you with this a law I have tested in the fires of Akasia, in the boardrooms of Sandton, in the townships of Mamelodi, and in the quiet of my own study:

Your perspective determines your peace. Your peace determines your power. Your power determines your progress.

You will never solve a problem from the same level of thinking that created it. You must ascend. You must rise. You must take the elevator of perspective.

The Scripture is clear: "Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things". This is not a suggestion. It is a command. It is not optional. It is essential. It is not for the super-spiritual. It is for every believer who refuses to live stranded on the basement level of immediate panic.

Prayer

Lord Jesus Christ, King of eternity, I step into Your elevator today. Lift me from the basement of fear to the rooftop of faith. Give me Your eyes to see my problems as You see them—not as mountains, but as brushstrokes on Your vast canvas of redemption. I choose worship over worry. I choose gratitude over grumbling. I choose heaven's perspective over earth's panic. In the mighty name of Jesus, who ascended and gave gifts to men, I pray. Amen.

From my veranda in Akasia, Pretoria, where the Jacarandas bloom and the elevators are always open.

Harold Mawela

https://open.spotify.com/episode/2rBXbTd96eyVPP59rlFbCz?si=iydpYcEwTV6DtGV3E55Gaw

https://podcasts.apple.com/cy/podcast/the-elevator-of-perspective/id1506692775?i=1000773974254&l=el