Pieces of the puzzle
Just the other day I had this long conversation with one of my kids about my childhood. It was a bit interesting trying to explain what life was like before computers, internet, cell phones and Wi-Fi. “How did you watch movies?” “How did you look up stuff?” “What did you do?”
For those of us that remember the times before having personal computers, phones, and Wi-Fi, we have to dig deep, deep down memory lane, but before long, beautiful memories begin appearing!
Memories of family time, playing board games like Mouse Trap and Monopoly or Dominoes and card games. Taking walks in the park or around the block. Going to the lake to feed the ducks after church, picnics in the fields, and car rides just to discover new places.
I cherish those times.
Often there would be a puzzle in the making on a side table somewhere in the house, a place to gather after an evening meal or while waiting for the chicken-pot-pies to finish in the oven. A good puzzle always took the stress of the day away!
One can get lost in all the tiny pieces trying to find the perfect fit for the finished image. Puzzles were always a challenge to me, knowing that each one of those little odd pieces had a perfect fit, however, each one in its own way very different to the other.
A while back, I purchased many different puzzles of 300 small pieces for the girls to put together at the Ecuador Hope House. I thought that maybe it would be a good bonding time for the girls, maybe a way for them to work together and get to know each other a little better this year with so many new girls.
They were divided into 8 groups and all 60 girls went to work right away. They had a mission and they were determined to finish the goal at hand! No one had to tell them what to do, even for those that had never put together a puzzle before, the task was simple, before them laid 300 little odd pieces, all with one purpose. Their job was to find that piece and place them in their perfect place!
Some started building the frame first, some began collecting similar colors, others just started trying to fit pieces together, but eventually, some after an hour, others after many hours, they all finished their puzzle showing a finished perfect masterpiece!
Isn’t it amazing how our life resembles a piece of the puzzle? Alone we are just odd pieces, a little rough on the outside maybe, but when we see our life the way the Lord intended it, we are part of the beautiful life in Christ, all working together for a perfect picture!
Ephesians 4:16 says, “He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.”
We were made for something more. Me and you, we were made to love Christ, love one another, and love ourselves, knowing that as we work together, helping each other grow, we are growing into God’s perfect masterpiece!
