“Now we see in a mirror dimly. Then we shall see very clearly. Now my knowledge is incomplete. Then I will have complete knowledge as God has complete knowledge of me.” 1 Corinthians 13:12
Have you noticed that God alone has complete knowledge and control of our lives? Try as we might, we can’t see what’s going to happen until we get there, and we don’t always understand the purpose behind our circumstances. Our Lord knows beginning to end, but our view is limited. Yet it is the Lord’s mercy, for it would be too much for us to handle all at once. Instead, He lovingly provides for us moment by moment. He has special surprises in store for us each day, and His grace is sufficient for any difficulties. But sometimes — maybe months, maybe years later — we reach a moment where He broadens our view to understand what He’s been doing all along… and we stand to admire the beauty of it all.
When I was single, I longed to get married… but I did not long for all the changes that it would entail. And when God provided my husband Steve, it did set into motion a series of changes. (See https://sarah.4jcg.org/i-will-follow/ for details) At times I have struggled in all the changes — a new house, a new routine, a new job, a new church, new friends — and at other times I have embraced them. When we’re in the moment, sometimes all we see is what’s right in front of us, the small view.
It’s been almost 10 months now since my “new” life has begun, and I’m beginning to see a bigger picture — the plan that God has seen and known all along. There were three important things in my life that, for a while, I tried to cling to. I did not want to leave my church, my job, or my orchestra. At first I wanted to make my new life with Steve fit right in with my old life without him. But it wasn’t working, and God changed my heart to realize that it was time to move on. And now as I look back on those three important things, I can see more clearly God’s hand guiding me to where I am now.
You see in the past 10 months, all three of those things that I wanted to keep the same have changed!
- Countless people have also moved away from my former church — some to other churches, others to different states — and new people have come. The church is not the same, and had I been there, I would have experienced change.
- I saw a picture of my former school’s staff the other day and was shocked by how many faces I didn’t recognize — at least half! Several teachers retired, and many moved out of state or to different schools. The school is not the same, and had I been there, I would have experienced change.
- I’m still on the e-mail list for the orchestra, so I can see the changes that are occurring there. Our conductor retired, so this entire year has been a searching and interviewing year — every concert has been conducted by someone different as they evaluate each one. The orchestra is not the same, and had I been there, I would have experienced change.
Things are always changing; however, I find it interesting that these three areas of my past life are undergoing more intense change than usual. It gives confirmation to the decision I made (to move wholeheartedly into everything new), because I realize that I couldn’t have clung to the familiarity of those things anyway. And it gives me encouragement for the future because I can see God’s purpose in the timing of the events of my life.
When you can only see the small picture, wait and trust. Maybe someday God will bring into view the big picture!