Creating a Mosaic

There are so many broken pieces in my life (don't we all have broken pieces?). For a long time, I have prayed for God to repair these pieces in my life. I know that when a broken thing is glued back together, you see the cracks and flaws; the repairs are evident and the repaired object isn't quite as lovely as the original, but it becomes functional again.  And I've been OK with that. Just put me back together again, make me useful and let people see the cracks.

A funny thing happened a few days ago and it totally changed my perspective, and it changed my prayer. God gave me a different picture of what He is doing in my life right now, and He isn't putting me back together at all.

The picture I have in my mind is a mosaic. A mosaic is a picture that is made from hundreds or even thousands of small broken pieces, skillfully assembled into something beautiful and new. The more I have thought about this, the more I have embraced this and believe that this is what God is doing in my life right now. He doesn't want to put me back together in some fashion that is a reminder of what I was; He wants to take all of these broken pieces and make something beautiful and new. He doesn't repair - He creates! Yes, the mosaic is made up of lots and lots of broken pieces, but the emphasis isn't on the brokenness but on the way all of those broken pieces come together in something new.

Right now the mosaic that is my life has lots of empty spaces and there are lots of broken pieces scattered here and there. I don't yet have a clear picture of what the finished product will look like, and my best guess is that I won't really see the finished picture until the last piece is added and I step into eternity. But I am trusting the Master Mosaic Maker - my great God and Heavenly Father - as He lovingly and skillfully takes each broken piece and fits it into what He is creating. Our struggles, our pain - nothing is wasted. There are no left-over broken pieces in the end. I don't know how all of these pieces will fit together, but I have a renewed sense of peace and hope, and yes, anticipation, as I watch and wait.

God is creating my mosaic, taking the broken things and putting the pieces into something beautiful and new. I look forward to the day when I can look at the mosaic and pick out those pieces that seem so random now and say, "oh yes, so this is why . . . this is how God used this in my life." I look back on my life and I can see how some of the broken pieces in the past have been gently placed into what God is creating, and I know that my faithful God will continue to take each and every piece and place it exactly where it needs to be.

Romans 8:28 says, "And we know that ALL things [my emphasis] work together for good for those that love God, for those who have been called according to His purpose." All things, even the really hard things, the things we would never choose - God works them all together for our ultimate good, and for His ultimate glory.

Those "all things" make up the mosaic of our lives, and if we love God, we can rest assured that He is creating something beautiful in our lives. I am trusting Him and resting in this assurance today. I hope you are, too!