During my recent 6 weeks of enforced rest, I decided to tackle a 1000-piece jigsaw puzzle called “Oh Canada!” It was very challenging, to say the least. All that red, and so many tiny pictures of Canadian life and culture – it nearly did my head in! But I persisted and I’m pleased to say that I completed it…eventually!
I do enjoy jigsaw puzzles, although I do find that they become all-consuming so nothing else gets done once I’ve started a puzzle. But as I was sorting and re-sorting pieces, I found myself thinking about some life-lessons to be learned from ‘puzzling’.
- Patience and focus.
Yes, sad but true! I can’t understand how some people can complete jigsaw puzzles under pressure and therefore quickly. Apparently it takes an average person roughly 3-5 hours to complete a 1000-piece puzzle. Patience is required. What’s more, it’s very difficult to multi-task when you’re doing a jigsaw. You can’t knit, play the piano or read a book while you’re ‘puzzling’ – the most I could do is listen to music (although some people might be able to listen to an audio book or a podcast – I think I’d get too distracted by the words.) In life, great things take time – to become an expert at anything requires long study, practice and a huge dose of commitment. Becoming more and more like Jesus is a life-long journey, requiring God’s grace and our commitment to the process.
- Step by step is the only way to go.
Tipping all the jigsaw pieces out of the box is thrilling, but intimidating at the same time. To go from the mess of all those small cardboard shapes to the completed picture seen on the lid of the box can seem daunting, but it can only be achieved one piece at a time. Everyone has their own process (such as starting with the borders, sorting the pieces by colour, focusing on one section at a time etc) but there’s no short-cut. Every single piece has its correct place in the picture and that can only be achieved step by step. On the journey of faith, we are called to live day by day, step by step. God provides for us – manna or bread on a daily basis, no more and no less than what God knows we need and so we learn to trust for the next step….and then the next one, and each one after that.
- Keep the big picture in mind.
It’s easy to get bogged down and only focus on the individual pieces, which is of course important. But if that’s all we do while puzzling, we lose the thrill and the challenge of how we’re ultimately putting together a big picture. It’s helpful to take a step back from time to time to take in the big picture – to see how far we’ve come as well as where we’re heading. Likewise having an eternal perspective on life, reminding ourselves that God is about “bringing unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ” (Ephesians 1:10) gives us strength, vision and purpose to cope with daily struggles and challenges as we recognise that God is always at work fulfilling the “big picture”.
- Every piece is different but valuable
No 2 puzzle pieces are the same – each is unique but each is needed to complete the picture. Sometimes I try to locate pieces based on their colour (or unique shade of blue for the multi- hued sky or sea), other times my search is based on the shape (the bumps and cavities on their edges). Pieces aren’t interchangeable and slotting a piece into its correct home is very satisfying. A missing piece is disaster and that gap will stand out like the proverbial sore thumb! We all need each other, as different and varied and unique as we are. Sounds like Paul’s teaching about the body of Christ to me – feet, hands, ears, eyes etc – unity and diversity is God’s design for the church. We are all valuable.
- Having a puzzling-partner can be helpful
Another pair of eyes, another pair of hands can double the fun when it comes to finishing a puzzle. (We did one as a family over a couple of days at Christmas!) Some people prefer to complete the whole puzzle on their own as a solitary pursuit, but there’s also joy to be found when sharing the task and working together towards a common goal. God created us for community, to share the good times as well as the bad and everyone suffers if we ignore that – we’re better together.
May God continue to guide our thoughts and our actions as we piece together the puzzle of life, refreshed by his grace and with our vision on the big picture of all things reconciled in Christ as the goal.
Wendy Perkins
CMLA Board member