Putting the Pieces Together

Entering the living room with my baby in my arms, I turned to my 2 year old. “You asked if we could do a puzzle earlier, and I said not right now, but now we can do a puzzle if you want.”

My 2 year old lit up. “Okay!”

He hurried to fetch the puzzle.

I attempted to put my baby in his bouncy seat, but he fused. He was having one of those “Mommy hold me” days.

I’d just have to work on the puzzle one-handed. How hard could that be? 

My 2 year old placed the puzzle on the table and climbed onto a chair.

I helped him open the 100 piece bunny puzzle.

“Now, first we put edge pieces over here and middle pieces over there. See? This is an edge piece. It has a straight side.”

I knew the piece sorting was still a bit beyond my son’s comprehension.

My 4 year old daughter entered the kitchen.

I smiled at her. “Want to help us with the puzzle?”

She frowned. “No… Well, just for the sorting.”

With my daughter’s help, we soon had the pieces sorted. 

She wandered off to the living room.

I shifted my baby to the other arm.

My son was trying to put two totally unrelated pieces together.

I knew I had to act fast before he became too discouraged. 

I sifted through the edge pieces finding several for the grass at the bottom of the puzzle.

I spotted two that should fit. I put them together. Good.

Taking the pieces apart, I passed them to my son.

“Here. These two go together.”

As he turned his attention to them, I slid the mismatched pieces away from him.

It only took him a moment to connect the two pieces I had passed to him.

He reached for the closest piece and began trying to make it fit.

I turned my attention back to my pile of pieces.

Finding another that would fit with his pieces, I passed it to him.

While he worked to attach that one, I strained my brain to line up five more pieces. Rather than connect the pieces, I slide them in front of him.

“Here. Put these ones together.”

I paused to stretch, then was back at it.

It took a lot of quick thinking to keep my son supplied with connecting puzzle pieces.

As we neared the end of the puzzle, my daughter came to help us finish.

By the end of the puzzle, my brain felt fried, but I had a happy 2 year old and a completed puzzle.

Later, I paused to reflect on how much work it was for me to put together 100 perfectly fitting pieces.

How much greater is God who is piecing together all of history!

God is orchestrating all things into a cohesive, marvelous big picture story, even while giving me free will to make choices.

As Paul taught in Acts 17:24-27:

“The God who made the world and everything in it—He is Lord of heaven and earth… He Himself gives everyone life and breath and all things. From one man He has made every nationality to live over the whole earth and has determined their appointed times and the boundaries of where they live. He did this so that they might seek God…” (CSB)

When I read the whole Bible from cover to cover, this becomes more apparent.

What a beautifully intricate and incomprehensibly complex puzzle God has woven together, and He doesn’t feel worn out from this work (unlike me with a measly 100 piece puzzle).

What an incredible God we serve!

In the midst of that, I get to be a part of helping put the pieces together as I make choices day by day.

Sometimes, like my 2 year old, I try to put the pieces together the way I want.

I grab two totally unrelated pieces and try to force them into place.

I don’t know they don’t belong together in the big picture, but God knows.

As I submit to His guidance in my life, God passes me puzzle pieces that do belong together.

I get to partner with God in putting them together, though in truth, He is the mastermind behind it all.

He shows me what role He wants me to play. I am simply to obey.

Whether that is inviting a neighbor to church, writing a blog post, praying for a co-worker, volunteering at church, or helping a friend in need. It is also in the bigger choices I make: who I marry, where I live, what job I do.

As I ask Him to guide me in these things, I join Him in building a part the big picture story.

How incredible that God, the Master Puzzle Maker, invites me into the process of helping put the pieces together!

May I be faithful to follow His instructions.