I am not sure if it comes with age, or is simply a season...but lately I feel very aware of the brokenness in this world. I don't say this as a pessimist--there are still so many incredible moments of life that leave me overwhelmingly grateful. Yet it seems that I am increasingly aware to be on my guard because things are not as they appear on the surface.
As I was pondering this tonight, I was reminded of the "Honey, I Shrunk the Kids" playground at Hollywood Studios in Orlando. It is designed in homage to the movie set and features 30 foot tall blades of glass, a maze of root systems, slides made from over sized strips of film, super sized cheerios and many other props.
My boys spent 45 minutes playing on it one morning and I had time to really examine the detail and the setting. My sons, on the other hand, were just in the moment. They never paused to look at the bigger picture. To me it was a creative work of art. To them it was just a fun playground.
I have been thinking a lot about life and perspective. As I watch people all around me make decisions and/or live out the consequences of their choices it becomes more and more clear that for life to mean anything at all the proper perspective is a must.
In the same way a 30 foot tall blade of grass doesn't make much sense out of context, many of the circumstances of our life can be equally confusing--unless we have the context of a Creator that knows the number of hairs on our head, a loving Father who sacrificed much for our souls, a Sustainer that promises us daily grace. In THAT context we begin to understand that while we may feel suddenly small and our scenery confusing and frightening, there is a larger story.
Would God go to such lengths to pursue us and put His Son on a cross for our salvation then turn around and torture us through this life? It doesn't make any sense.
I don't understand a lot about the way things go down in this world. My heart breaks a lot. The only explanation I have is that sin is ever present and we desperately need a Savior. We must focus our eyes not on the temporary circumstances, but on the ONE who holds the future.
It is so tempting to get bogged down, but He calls us to look up. He is our hope.
"Set your mind on things above, not on Earthly things." Colossians 3:2
2 comments:
At 26 and without children yet, I always enjoy your posts. I've never commented before, but I read something recently from this post - http://barbedwirehalo.wordpress.com/2012/01/14/giving-julia-back-week-22/ - that I think really resonates with the end of yours:
"But I do not believe God “causes” things like these…he simply allows them to happen because it’s just part of life." (It's toward the end of the very long post, and said in respect to the Trisomy 18 diagnosis of their baby girl.)
I think it really adds perspective to things we question and/or want control over.
Thank you so much for your writing. I really, really enjoy it! I have been reading for a long time, but never commented. After getting a month behind in my reading, I was pleasantly reminded today of how beautiful your blog is :)
Thank you!
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