Release the Reins

1 Peter 5:10

And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.

Oh how often I miss the big picture. It is as if at times I have on shades that obstruct my vision. My sight is blurred causing me to see what is right in front of me while distracting me from seeing life all around me. Life is a puzzle. The small pieces I experience are only a fraction of actual life, the big picture. Life isn't just about what is happening right in front of you...it is the things unseen too. Too easily I get caught up in what I'm experiencing, the things that I'm responsible for, the relationships I desire to maintain, wondering how on earth I'm going to handle one more curve ball. When these things are my immediate focus and my constant meditation it is no wonder that the whirlwind of stress sucks me in and forcefully throws me around. I was never intended to manage my own life. I have failed miserably in this management position. When the reins are in my own hands, I feel like a child who sneaks into the kitchen and while his parents aren't looking snatches a cookie out of the jar. The child knows better, or else he wouldn't sneak into the kitchen. Just like the child, I know better than to take the reins of my life into my own hands. The thing is God never turns his back; you can't just pull one over on him. You can't just take over for a little while and expect all things to fit together to form the big picture. The puzzle changes and suddenly the pieces don't fit together. You force them in but they don't stay. How long do you keep trying every piece only to find none of them work? I've tried plenty long. Frustration creeps in, anger is easily aroused, and bitterness is quickly harvested. I continue to go back and try every piece again wanting to show God I can do it. He sits, watches, tries to get my attention, watches me some more and waits until I have suffered a little while. He then demands to be heard. He woos me to his throne of grace. It is now that I can no longer stand on my own, but I am forced to fall prostrate before the author and perfecter of my faith and release the reins gripped in my palm. I must once again surrender my life to him. Allow him to come in and be glorified in my life. He promises rest for the weary. He restores us by his strength and comforts us with his unconditional love. He picks me up, removes the shades from my eyes, and takes the reins into his hands. He allows me to see that all the things I have endured are only a part of the many things to come. Refinement and restoration are at constant work-they are the things unseen. My joy is now complete. The whirlwind of worry and stress no longer tosses me about. He has outfitted me in armor and prepared me to continue experiencing life with him by my side.