Craig Clouston

The Picture On The Box

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord …
Jeremiah 29:11

Brad and Sharon loved jigsaw puzzles. However, this one was going to be a challenge. Brad had purchased what he thought was a wonderful acquisition. He’d picked up a five-thousand piece puzzle at a yard sale. The $1 dollar catch was that there was no box; only the puzzle in a cellophane bag.
He smiled as he handed his wife the puzzle.
Seeing the bag, Sharon asked, “Where’s the box?” The look on Brad’s face told her all she needed to know. “I can’t believe you bought a puzzle without the box! You know how crucial the picture is to figuring out which piece goes where. How do you propose we assemble this puzzle without it?”
Brad, having prepared for her reaction on the way home, argued, “I’ve already got that all figured out,” he said proudly. “We’ll lay the pieces out, face up, set the border by the straight edges, then assemble pieces with the same colors, and so on; we’ll figure it out. C’mon. It’ll be fun!”
Shaking her head in mock annoyance, Sharon answered with a disclaimer, “Only if you promise me you won’t buy any more puzzles without the box.”

†

In the natural, we view our lives in terms of a jigsaw puzzle; we see innumerable events that have no apparent connection, and the sum of all the parts is still undefined. Yet, we hope that someday it will portray a beautiful and complete picture.
And as in today’s story, we sometimes blindly proceed, doing the best we can in view of what we have to work with, sorting through the pieces, trying to find the ones that fit. Sometimes they fall easily into place; other times, due to a lack of spiritual perspective, we jam mismatched pieces together in our attempt to make them fit.
Don’t become discouraged. Instead, relax in the knowledge that God sees us with Spiritual eyes. He knows what the picture on the box is supposed to look like.
If we yield the pieces of our lives to His care, He can, and promises to take each one and make them interlock perfectly.

Prayer

“Take the pieces of my life, Lord, and make them into something beautiful. Amen.”