I pulled a page out of a science magazine the other day, to show to my daughter. It was a photo of an iceberg, in a beautiful shade of green, from algae. I set the page on the counter because she was busy at the time, and then forgot about it. She picked it up today, while cleaning clutter off the counter, and asked me about it. I said, “Oh, that’s for you! I thought you might be interested in it.” We talked about it a bit and then when we were done, she said, “What do you want me to do with it now?” I told her she could throw it away. I’d only been saving it for her.
I do that a lot with things I read in magazines ~ and I read a lot of magazines. Science magazines, religious magazines, cooking magazines, travel magazines, decorating magazines… I guess I’m interested in a lot of different things!
And I’m always tearing things out of my magazines: articles, recipes, pictures of home décor or beautiful or interesting destinations around the world… Sometimes I’m saving them for myself, but lots of times, they are for one of my kids.
For my daughter there might be an article about dogs, because she loves animals. For my son, maybe something about an athlete he admires. They both get history and science stuff, cuz my goal is to teach them, but even those will be tailored to their interests and their passions. They are learning, but in a way that has been personally chosen for them.
These articles are to teach them. I love learning and I always get excited about them learning new things, but I always have a reason for everything I give them. I want them to learn in the way I think will be best for them to learn.
This is how God is with each of us. We all have a lot to learn, but God doesn’t teach us all the same way. The challenges and trials that He allowed in Job’s life are not what He would plan for your life, or my life. The blessings and trials in our lives are not the same as in someone else’s ~ even in our own families. God is the source of all wisdom, and we need to trust in His plan for our lives, even when things are hard. We won’t always understand, but we can learn to trust that He is always sovereign, and He is always loving.
Light Expectations 