All Things Work Together for Good!

By: Melanie Moore

During the cold winter days when it's too cold to venture out, my son and I enjoy sitting together at our kitchen table and working jigsaw puzzles. He loves a challenge so he will often pick out the puzzle with the most pieces - especially when they are unusually shaped and very small! I enjoy our puzzle time because it gives us time to be together and talk, and if you have a teenage boy, you know how rare and precious those moments can be!

When we first opened the box, we were amazed at how many tiny pieces fit inside this deceptively small box. We thought perhaps this would be an easy puzzle because the picture was pretty simple. However, once we saw the small pieces, we knew we were in for a challenge.

While working our latest puzzle, it struck me that my life sometimes feels like a jumbled-up jigsaw puzzle -- the pieces are irregular and confusing. Sometimes life just feels like a big jumble of nonsense, doesn't it?

My first step with a jigsaw puzzle is to arrange the sides. These are easy to find and make sense. They have a straight edge that you know will frame the puzzle. I feel like this is how some of life can be. We have a structure that makes sense, and the stability of the structure gives us some room to understand how other aspects of life fit together.

However, once we dug into the remaining puzzle pieces, it became much more challenging! There were several times that we were tired and needed to just take a break because nothing was making sense. However, we trusted that the box showed the photo that the puzzle pieces would build together.

Likewise, we can trust God to put together all of the various pieces of our lives to build something beautiful. Some pieces of life might not make sense now or ever, but we know God's heart and we trust His goodness and unfailing love.

God promises that:

"And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good,
for those who are called according to his purpose." Romans 8:28 ESV

When life doesn't make sense, look to God and trust that He is in control of the big picture of our lives. He is working each and every piece of life together for good for those who love Him.