“Trust in and rely confidently on the LORD with all your heart And do not rely on your own insight or understanding. In all your ways know and acknowledge and recognize Him, And He will make your paths straight and smooth [removing obstacles that block your way].” Proverbs‬ ‭3:5-6‬ ‭AMP‬‬

Proverbs 3:5-6 have been a staple of my spiritual survival. I have to continually remind myself that I don’t know where I’m going. When I get afraid I’m going the wrong way, I’ve allowed myself to think it’s up to me to have the right answer. The reality is that I’m supposed to seek guidance from God, do my very best to make choices against the truth of His word, and trust that His spirit will guide me home.

We spend a great deal of time worrying about what to do if this happens or that happens. We’re so afraid to lose what we’ve been given in this life, we continually follow self over God. We have such a stranglehold on people and things, we aren’t able to be at peace with what we have in the moment. How can we ever be at rest if we’re too busy being afraid we’re going to miss out, or somehow be deprived? We become so obsessed with trying to keep up, we don’t realize we’re letting some of our most valuable blessings slip away.

It’s like trying to put together the most maddening puzzle ever created. In the picture above, you see the pieces of a puzzle my husband had made for me as a gift for our anniversary. It’s a spectacular gift, as I am a lover of puzzles and a lover of photography. I get lost in the colors, shapes, and the satisfaction that comes with placing a piece it takes me forever to find. Patiently I’ll sit for hours on end, starting at pieces. It’s persistence. I just continue to go back and put whatever pieces I can manage until they’re all in place. I don’t worry about what pieces aren’t placed yet, or what pieces are already on the board. I just keep my eyes moving until the next piece is made known to me.

I’ve commented before on the lesson we need to learn from Abraham… he did as God asked, one step at a time. He was never given the details of what his life would look like. He didn’t know where they were going to live, when they’d be given the child they were promised, much less how Abraham would father generations. He just made each choice as it was put in front of him, and the choice was either go his own way or God’s way. You know how it turned out when he decided to try things his own way. He wasn’t the only one to suffer for that choice.

Of course, once the choices have been made, bemoaning them achieves nothing other than to keep ourselves miserable. We don’t look in the mirror and wonder why our noses are in the center of our faces. That’s just where they go. Our past looks the way it does because that’s how it looks. Placing judgment on it won’t change it, but will allow it to continue to damage your present.

When a puzzle first comes out of the box, it’s just a jumbled bunch of pieces. It’s only when the last piece is in place that you can appreciate the whole picture.

“For I know the plans and thoughts that I have for you,’ says the LORD, ‘plans for peace and well-being and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” Jeremiah‬ ‭29:11‬ ‭AMP‬‬