Half Empty Is Half Full
You have probably heard, or even used, one of these two phrases – “The glass is half full” or “The glass is half empty.” If the glass is filled to 50% capacity is it half empty or is it half full? That rhetorical question is often a litmus test of a person’s perspective on a certain situation or circumstance. What you see as half full someone else might view as half empty, or vice versa. A person with a “half full” perspective generally has cause for optimism, and conversely, “half empty” often implies a pessimistic outlook.
To look at it another way, let’s turn to football. When does a punter come onto the field? The punter is most often called upon when the offense has failed to gain ten yards on three attempts. So, on fourth down, the punter takes a snap from the center and punts to ball to the opposing team, hopefully taking away their field position advantage, or better yet, pinning them deep in their own end. The punter on my college football team used to occasionally run with the ball to try and gain a first down instead of kicking it to the other team. That drove our coaching staff crazy but George would run off the field and say, “Coach, even though it was 4th and 20, I saw a first down!” Now that is definitely a glass half full mindset!
(As a side note, he was a three time all-conference selection, one of the best and most consistent punters in the league.)
The Bible tells us that we should sing to the Lord whether we face 2nd down and 1 yard to go or 4th and 20. Psalm 104:33 says this, “I will sing to the LORD all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.” Psalm 47:6 puts it like this, Sing praises to God, sing praises; sing praises to our King, sing praises. And in the Book of Acts (16:25) we read that when Paul and Silas were in prison – that certainly would be cause for a half empty point of view – they were praying and singing, and guess what, other prisoners were listening.
The Westminster Shorter Catechism puts it this way – “Man’s chief aim is to glorify God, and to fully enjoy him forever.” We worship not based upon how we feel. We worship because God is worthy of our praise (Psalm 86:9: Revelation 4:11).
So, I ask you today, what is it in your life that has a grip on you? What is it that is zapping your joy? What is it that is causing you to want to punt on 4th and 20? You might not be able to change your circumstances, but you can change your outlook. Worshipping every day, whether you feel like it or not, will change you and it will change those around you.
And remember this, even if your glass is half empty, it is also half full!
(As a postscript, sadly, George died in 2013 after a long and courageous battle with cancer, and even on his death bed, as cancer had eaten away his body and he only had hours to live, George still had a glass half full mindset, he still saw a first down possible, even at 4th and 20. The last time I talked to George was only days before he died and he ended the call with these words, “Dave, thank you for your friendship, it means a lot to me.” I replied, “No, George, thank you!” Love you and miss you ol’ #42!)
If you are encouraged by this or any of my writings, you can subscribe to be notified by email when I post something new. To subscribe, click here. Once you put in your email address you will then get an email confirming that you wish to subscribe. Thank you.