Memory Monday: Looking at a Piece of the Puzzle (Isaiah 55:8)

Today is the first day of spring break. My kids are sleeping in, and we are looking forward to a week of very few plans and lots of relaxation time. I had big plans for my kids to spend the week playing outside and just enjoying some time off. Until my oldest fell out of a tree on Saturday and hurt her arm. We now have a temporary cast, a sling and a trip to the doctor tomorrow to decide if her elbow has a hairline fracture or if it was just a bad sprain.

This was not exactly what I was thinking of when I was planning spring break. I'm beginning to think it's not a vacation in the Fairchild house unless someone gets sick or hurts herself. So, we're modifying our plans, and I'm trying to come up with things we can do inside to keep my girls entertained (did I mention that it snowed last night, too?).

As my plans for spring break imploded, I was reminded that God needs us to be flexible. Often, his plans are not my plans. While I find it frustrating when my plans get changed, I usually find that He has better plans than mine. I can't begin to understand how all the things that happen fit into God's grand plan, but I only get to see a small part of the picture. God sees the whole picture.

Today's Memory Monday verse reminds us of this. Isaiah 55:8 says "'For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,' declares the LORD." God doesn't see the world the way we do. He sees everything in light of how it will bring Him glory. He wants us to continually become more like Jesus. Sometimes that means that we need to be less comfortable and more flexible so that He can use us in great ways. There are things that we can only learn when we are uncomfortable and stretching and growing.

As you memorize this verse this week, remind your kids that God is more interested in our character than He is in our comfort. It is only when we are open to His plans and becoming more like Jesus that we are ultimately useful as part of God's plan.

Give your kids a visual picture of what we see versus what God sees when it comes to His plan. Work a puzzle with your kids. Take a piece out of the middle. Tell your kids that this puzzle piece is the amount of God's plan that we can see. By itself, the puzzle piece doesn't make a whole picture, but when we put the puzzle piece into the puzzle, it makes an entire picture. God can see the whole puzzle, but we can only see our particular piece, which might not always make a whole lot of sense on its own. We need to trust that God understands the big picture even if we can't see it.

If something happens this week that stretches your patience or changes your plans, remember that God needs you to be flexible so you can fill your place in His plan. He might be working on your character so you can be of more use to Him.