You know the feeling. You’ve opened the box that has a beautiful photo of what’s inside the box. An array of colors fill your eyes with colors galore and anticipation of creating your own masterpiece, using the contents from the box. Your time and effort will take patience, time, and concentration to the point where your eyes become tired and blurred. With numerous careful moves, honing in on each item from the box, you slowly solve the problem in front of you and just as you arrive at your “a-ha moment”, sadness and frustration take over your former serene lapses of time spent on your project. You’ve just entered the warp of frustration when one puzzle piece is either missing or your realization that one part  is not where it belongs, throwing off the entire completion of the numerous designs meant to come together in order and purpose to create the exact image that’s on the box.

So, it is with life sometimes. I think it’s safe to say many of us have experienced feelings of not “quite belonging”, “being in the wrong place at the wrong time”, staying in jobs or careers that do not satisfy a longing for accomplishment, making a difference in our world, or using our talents to their fullest potential.

In Rick Warren’s book “A Purpose Drive Life”, he wrote about how God has placed a purpose in every person. Quoting him from page 1 of chapter 1 is this: “It’s not about you. The purpose of your life is far greater than your own personal fulfillment, your peace of mind, or even your happiness”. He continues “if you want to know why you were placed on this  planet, you must begin with God. You were born BY His purpose and FOR His purpose”.

His book is a wonderful read for anyone and one I highly recommend. What Warren teaches is timeless wisdom in every chapter. He brings clarity and understanding to the age-old question “why am I here?” and helps the reader to identify purpose and not feel like the person struggling to force a puzzle piece in the wrong spot within its original design. Like a misplaced puzzle piece, how often do we–especially Christians–try to fit in where we don’t belong or linger in relationships that drain our energy rather than flourish, hang onto jobs that frustrate us, repeat the same behaviors over and over again hoping for change, with no results other than more despair and defeat.

Puzzle boxes have the picture of what’s inside the box. Like a preview of the finished puzzle, God gives us a glimpse of how our lives should look, too. In Romans 12: 2 Paul wrote “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” (New Living Translation)

As a child, when I began putting a puzzle together I always set the box cover on end so I could refer to it for hints as I fingered pieces, assembling outer edges first to begin filling in the remaining sections. It’s a habit I would continue to use now if I chose to sit down with a puzzle. In like manner, for me to live each day with purpose and intention, I hold my Bible on my lap and read portions of scripture that help me to see and understand why I’m here, what work God has for me to do, how to treat others inside and outside of my family, how to conduct myself in all manner. Life will be a constant puzzle for me and you as we figure it out. Only God sees the beginning to the end for us. Isaiah said “Only I (God) can tell you the future before it even happens. Everything I plan will come to pass, for I do whatever I wish”. (New Living Translation)

Years ago I sat under a teaching that unpacked the concept of how God sees our lives. Our life is like a line that is eternal, stretching east to west, no beginning or end. In one look, God sees each one of us as newborn, childhood to teen laboriously entering adulthood and eventually the elderly person waiting and abiding for physical death. The timeline of life–as we know it–differs greatly compared to His perspective.  He has every piece of our life exactly in its place according to His plan and purpose. Thus,  when we stray from His perfect design, trying to force ourselves to fit in the wrong time or spot, He patiently waits for an awakening within us to return to wisdom and discernment, and He carefully places us back in the right place.

We can assemble with ease when we place the puzzle box cover on edge, its photo acting as hints guiding each piece in our fingers. Moreso, we are able to glean abundant knowledge when the pages of a Bible are open on our laps, giving direction and meaning to life. 

The goal of the puzzle box is to empty its contents and put the design together. The goal of God is for us to empty ourselves before Him and allow Him to fill us with beauty, wonder…and purpose. 

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In full disclosure, a dear friend of mine gave me a suggestion to write about life compared to a puzzle. She’s a person I fully rely upon for true friendship through the mountains and valleys of my life, as we share prayer requests with one another as well as the goodness of God.