At the end of my twenty-sixth year, I met the woman who is now my wife, and I married her at the age of twenty-seven. From that union, we have been blessed with two strong and dependable sons. Looking back, my wife appeared to me as the most beautiful woman in the world at that time, and I made one of the most important decisions of my life by choosing her. However, when I consider it from her perspective, I sometimes wonder if it was actually she who chose me.

Indeed, throughout every moment of our lives, we are required to make choices. Those choices have produced our present reality, and the choices we make today will determine our tomorrow. When making decisions, we do so through a certain perspective. Most people observe, listen, think, evaluate, and then decide. The first step in this process is seeing. Therefore, how we see is extremely important.

Many years ago, there was a film that introduced a shocking shift in perspective. The 1999 film The Matrix, starring Keanu Reeves as the main character Neo, contains a memorable scene in which the protagonist must choose between a red pill and a blue pill as he enters a virtual reality world. Taking the red pill is painful, but it allows him to see and experience the truth. Taking the blue pill means accepting his current reality and continuing to live an ordinary life. After much hesitation, the main character chooses the red pill and awakens to a new existence within the virtual world.

From a pastoral perspective, the color red reminds me of the gospel of Jesus Christ’s cross. It is painful and often difficult, but when we choose to accept it, we experience a new spiritual reality. Applying this principle to life, we can understand that others may choose the blue pill, interpreting and applying life from a completely different viewpoint. In other words, people can see the same reality differently depending on their perspective.

Throughout my life journey, I have met countless people. However, I have recently realized that the number of people who have truly influenced my life and walked alongside me is far fewer than I once thought. One important lesson I have learned through these relationships is that every person possesses both “red” and “blue” aspects within them. Depending on the angle and perspective from which we view them, those aspects can appear very differently. Ultimately, much of life depends on how we choose to see.

Most people, myself included, tend to judge others based on only one side of who they are, even though each person is a multidimensional being. What I have come to realize is that the kind of lens we wear and the kind of truth we accept greatly influence our judgments and decisions.

With this understanding, I believe the Holy Spirit has given me a special pair of glasses — glasses that allow me to see from God’s perspective. He has also led me to take in the Word of God, which contains both the Old and New Testaments. As a result, my way of seeing has changed. While I can still recognize the weaknesses in myself and in others, I have also begun to see strengths more clearly and more abundantly.