HIS thing, not everything

I’ve heard that every picture tells a story. I am not sure that I agree completely. It’s hard to trust that every picture perfect image that floods social media tells a story. Maybe it does tell a story, just not the whole story.
On a recent trip, I stood in awe for a moment when something, really several things dawned on me as this view was in front of me. First of all what beautiful art the clock that stood in front of me is. As I self-admittedly am a huge believer in His timing there is a big picture that is always amidst.
This clock is just a part of a big picture and although we can focus on the time, whether in a moment, in a season, or in a journey there’s always more than just what we are focused on. In saying that I also will be the first to say that the big part or everything else in the picture or life never seems to shine or even be noticeable when the time is wrong in our eyes. Fortunately, there is more than the time on this clock we see when looking at the entire picture.
Something else that hit me as I stood looking at this view is the architecture. Does it not look a bit like slices all put together to form the entire clock? This led me to think about how every slice of life is valid in order to be whole. Whether those are wonderful slices of life with incredible moments or slices that we may like to never remember or doubt why we had to endure them they all make us who we are today.
Another thing that hit me about this view was the distance. If we can get past the clock itself there’s a beautiful city. There’s a lot that makes a city. From the actual land that forms it to the structures that sit on it to the humans that inhabit it. From this view, it’s easy to admire all that it takes for a city to function. I also imagine this image we see is not what that city has always looked like. Over the years I am certain that the structures have changed. There may be some people who have been there or their families have been there over all the years, but I am also certain that there are travelers or passers-by that were only briefly there whether for a moment or a season. This reminds me of the bigger picture of life too.
However, in all the aspects of this view, there’s one that hit me hardest and strongest. Mostly, we look at a clock viewing it to read the time. We don’t normally look at a clock from the inside. Could this not be somewhat like God’s view? What if we did see the bigger picture? Would life seem different? In the way we approach each moment, each day, each trial, each victory. What story do you see when looking at the momentary picture you’re in?