The Big Picture

I remember when I was in grade school, there was going to be a partial solar eclipse that we could see in our part of the country. We were advised to take a piece of paper and stick a pin hole in the middle of it. Then we could hold it over another piece of paper and we could watch the image of the eclipse on the paper. Looking at the sun directly was something our eyes could not do without damaging them, but the pinhole allowed us to see what we needed to see.

This week has been filled with bitter tragedy and divisiveness for our country and the world. Maybe we wonder why God has allowed these things to happen. The pinhole story reminds me that our only glimpse of the "Big Picture" of what God is doing can only be glimpsed through the pinhole of our finite minds. We cannot now see all that He is doing in the earthly and spiritual realms, He has shielded us from that which our human minds cannot comprehend or safely handle. I believe accepting God's limitations is why faith is so important. Hebrews 11:1 tells us:

 "Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see." 

It gives us a secure place to rest when we can't understand the things happening around us or  why they are happening. If we rest in God, we can trust and know that he is orchestrating all things perfectly. Faith reminds us that our understanding the why is not important. Understanding that He is in control, and trusting (resting) in Him is.

I read a very good quote this morning-"If our hearts have not come to rest in God, we will search in vain for any other place that is safe." Resting in God provides the only true rest for our hearts and minds in troubled times as well as in peace.