Power Point - December 3, 2004

December 3, 2004

And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.

-Romans 8:28

I confess—as a dad, I loved those times when I could reveal some of life’s big secrets to my young children. I mean the serious stuff: how much easier it is to blow up a balloon if you stretch it a few times. Or how to twist those black and white cookies apart so you can eat the creamy stuff first. Big kids love to teach little kids the tricks of the trade.

Another good one is showing children how much easier jigsaw puzzles are to put together if you look at the picture on top of the box. Find the four corner pieces, then all the pieces with straight edges, and the perimeter is done. Then look at the box top and begin grouping similarly colored pieces together and, voilà, it’s a piece of cake.

If you’re a puzzle purist who thinks looking at box tops is akin to using a calculator for math, forgive me. But there’s a spiritual lesson in puzzle box tops—especially for those who suffer. Life is a puzzle from our perspective but not from God’s. He alone sees the whole picture and knows where each piece fits.

Today—the day you are reading these words—is only one small piece of the complete picture of your life. And only God has the box top. Will you trust Him that today fits perfectly? As ill shaped and strange looking as today may seem to you, today has its place. God is going by the picture, so let Him have His way. The day you see the completed puzzle, you’ll be glad you did.