My mom likes to put challenging 1,000 piece puzzles together. When she dumps a box out I can’t help but think it will never come together; it’s just a jumbled mess that doesn’t look like anything promising. And yet each time I check in, it’s coming together. She had one with old-fashioned Christmas ornaments all hanging on blue beads. Another one was a solid picture of sprinkled and frosted doughnuts which, quite honestly, just made me hungry. A recent puzzle was shelves of books and their many titles. With patience, little by little, a picture begins to form. It doesn’t happen overnight and mom has to keep working at it, but each time the final picture eventually comes together.
Trust the Timing
Unfortunately, sometimes life can be a complicated puzzle. It just seems like a bunch of events that produce nothing but problems and chaos. But take heart, God is working in your life right now to bring it all together. From Ecclesiastes 3:11, “He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.” God had you on His radar for a long time. Psalm 139:16-17, “You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed. How precious are your thoughts about me God! They cannot be numbered!” Grab ahold of this thought-you are always on God’s mind. He’s looking at all the seemingly impossible parts of your life and He’s fitting them together to create something beautiful. So stay steadfast and keep watching, because you can be sure, it’s coming together.
Things to do today:
- Trust in God’s perfect timing.
- Read a similar blog called ‘Timing is Everything’ and listen to the song, ‘Glorious Unfolding.’
Joy is essential, and sometimes hard to find while shopping. Today while I was out and about, I came across a good sale. With perseverance, I found a great-looking pair of comfortable shoes. Later in the day, I was surprised to find two right shoes. Unfortunately, I am not saying the shoes were just right; I am saying the box contained two right shoes. Those shoes weren’t working for me, but somehow I found them. However, settling for shoes that don’t fit wasn’t even an option.
My mom and I recently visited Maria’s Sunflower Field of Hope and learned there’s always a reason to hope. We walked a path through the gorgeous flowers and saw prayers written and attached to the sunflowers. The prayers from Maria Children’s Glioma Cancer Foundation funds several research studies across the country that have led to new clinical trials and breakthroughs for children’s cancer. It was started by Megan and Ed McNamara in 2007 after their daughter Maria, 7, died from a brain tumor. The display stands as a giant reminder that there’s always a reason to hope.
My nephew and I love to go hiking in the reservoir near my house. One day while walking along a familiar path, we were surprised to see a huge vine hanging down right in the middle of the trail. Immediately, we arched our necks to look up towards the huge treetop where the vine started. Seeing it was secure, we knew Ben had to try it out. It was pretty high off the ground so we were both a little nervous. There was a notch near the lowest point so I lifted him up and put his foot there. My only instructions were ‘Hold on tight!’ As with a swing, I pulled him back and let go. I’m not sure whose smile was bigger as he conquered this new experience.
It’s easy for me to look back on my year and see the areas where I could have done better. If I spent more time working out I could’ve lost the extra weight I’ve been carrying around. Also, it’s a lot easier to write a book if I actually sit down at a computer to get my thoughts in order. The list goes on and on. I think hockey great Wayne Gretzky got it right when he said, “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” In reflection, I can see the places where I could have done things differently.
My mom and I are getting ready to go on vacation. Rhode Island, Connecticut, and Massachusetts are on the agenda. Consequently, we’ve been planning and preparing for quite some time. We perused travel brochures and picked specific activities for each state. I’ve wrote notes on cities we plan to visit, downloaded train and ferry schedules, and checked prices for the tours we wanted to take. On top of that, we booked an amazing hotel. I even checked the area weather and we packed our suitcases accordingly. How’s that for being prepared? (The Boy Scouts would be impressed!)
Fall is one of my favorite seasons. There’s something about the vibrant colors that appeals to me. Some years fall sneaks in quietly, and other years it seems to arrive overnight. I call that a ‘suddenly’. That’s what happened with a group of mums I picked up for my church. They gave me a sneak-peek of their colors: speckled white, dappled orange, and dotted red. But guess what? A few days ago when I watered them, I saw that everything changed. The orange mums were loaded with flowers, the white ones were crammed with blossums, and the red mums were overflowing with crimson buds. I thought it would be a gradual process, but overnight the mums were fully dressed. A suddenly took place.
On a recent hiking trip out west, my friend and I decided to tackle a major climb, deceptively called ‘Angel’s Rest.’ It was a 4.8 mile roundtrip hike rising continuously to 1,640 feet. Someone had the nerve to call it a ‘moderate’ climb. (Tell that to my pounding heart.) . Unfortunately, from the onset we were challenged. The trail began with rocks covering the first switchback, forcing us to pick our way carefully to keep from stumbling. After an hour of a steady climb, we stopped regularly to let our lungs catch up. During the 2nd hour, we were fighting fatigue and shortness of breath. By the 3rd hour, if we looked up, the top of the mountain came into view. Yet we still had several switchbacks to get there. Despite the challenges, we finally made it to the top; the stunning view making the obstacles a distant memory.
At the Victorian Bed and Breakfast where I work, a festive wedding shower was scheduled. There were so many things to do to get ready for this event! We worked on the landscaping beds and the flower baskets, we swept and dusted the great room, the massive deck was power-washed, the tables were set, and the lunch was prepared. At the scheduled time, the happy guests came in carrying their colorful presents. There was only one problem: the bride-to-be wasn’t there. She was stuck in California, still trying to catch a plane to Ohio. Ever have one of THOSE days?