One Piece At A Time
Over the Christmas holidays I suffered from a puzzling injury. Far too many hours were spent pouring over a puzzle and my back ached as a result! Now, the discomfort was self-inflicted. I find a lot of satisfaction in assembling hundreds of carefully cut cardboard pieces even when some physical discomfort comes with it. One key to completing a puzzle is to locate and set the edge pieces in place. However, there will still be so many more pieces to assemble, which at times can feel quite daunting.
Do you ever feel like the puzzle pieces of your life are not finding their proper place? Is there a desperation to discover some sense of purpose for some pieces? In Proverbs 16:1-9 we read,
The plans of the heart belong to a person, but the answer of the tongue is from the Lord. All the ways of a person are clean in his own sight, but the Lord examines the motives. Commit your works to the Lord, and your plans will be established. The Lord has made everything for its own purpose, even the wicked for the day of evil. Everyone who is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord; be assured, he will not go unpunished. By mercy and truth atonement is made for wrongdoing, and by the fear of the Lord one keeps away from evil. When a person’s ways are pleasing to the Lord, He causes even his enemies to make peace with him. Better is a little with righteousness than great income with injustice. The mind of a person plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps.
There is a lot to unpack from this passage but one truth rings clear: God is sovereign. He is in charge. As humans we may think that we can call the shots and control our own destiny. Yet God remains the supreme authority in the universe. Now, when it comes to puzzles, we only need to look at the box top to discover the big picture. We keep at the task because we can clearly see that once all the pieces are intricately iinterlocked, the desired image will be revealed. And in a far more wonderful way God longs to be involved in the lives of His followers. He has a purpose and plan that will glorify Himself and ultimately be life-giving.
Yes, we cannot always see the big picture God has planned for us. Some pieces will not appear to fit. And this raises an important question: will we see God as commander or concierge? When we treat God as our concierge, we will expect Him to arrange our life circumstances according to our personal priorities and preferences. However, as Proverbs 16 proclaims, it is the Lord who directs our steps. We must refrain from asking Him to serve our agenda. We must learn to acknowledge and accept His handiwork in our lives. And this can happen when we choose humility and dependence upon God. From that posture, we can trust that even the odd shaped pieces are part of His divine design for our lives.
If ever someone had reason to wonder about her life's puzzle pieces, it was Corrie Ten Boom. Corrie grew up in Haarlem, Holland. Alongside her father, she worked as a watchmaker. And by the time World War II had devastated her homeland, she was in midlife. Yet her love for God translated into courageous efforts to assist Jews who were fleeing the Nazis. But Corrie’s life was shattered when she and her family were arrested. Imprisoned in a German concentration camp, Corrie was faced with despairing or depending on God. That was when she had to grapple with what she would later famously say: “Hold everything in your hands lightly, otherwise it hurts when God pries your fingers open.”
Miraculously, Corrie survived her imprisonment. The rest of her life she became a vibrant voice for God’s faithfulness and grace even in a place of great pain and suffering. Though Corrie experienced confusion and fear, she would later say, “Obedience is easy when you know you are being guided by a God who never makes mistakes.”
Over the holidays I devoted many hours to puzzling, trusting that once all the pieces were assembled, the desired picture would be achieved. How much more must we trust that the Creator of the universe has a beautifully designed purpose for our lives. How are you feeling today about the puzzle pieces of your life? Are you expecting God to show you the whole picture before you trust Him? Trust Him. Believe Him. His purpose will emerge one piece at a time. And remember Corrie Ten Boom’s advice which is significant and straightforward, “Don’t bother to give God instructions, just report for duty.”