My life is much like a snow globe, you know, those ubiquitous baubles that tend to emerge at this time of year.
I have one on my shelf as I write. It’s cute enough just sitting there, but I didn’t buy it so that it would just sit on my shelf untouched. No, because it’s when I shake it that its intended purpose and beauty is revealed in the swirl of sparkly, glittering snowflakes that I see when I put it down again.
Back to my analogy . . .
Sometimes my life is a peaceful, idyllic scene, undisturbed and safe behind my glass encasement. I kind of like it that way. As one who follows Jesus and tries to do the right thing, that’s how life should be, right? A comfortable existence on Easy Street – charming, secure, and admired by others.
Just when I start to think this way, the inevitable happens. “Someone” comes along and decides that the snow globe needs some shaking.
. . . My husband and I begin to feel unsettled in a particular situation, and a few months later we find ourselves saying “yes” to a move and change of churches.
. . .A close friend reveals marital struggles and betrayal by a spouse, and we too live through that harsh reality with our friend.
. . . My husband and I suddenly and simultaneously feel called to pursue adoption just when our biological children have reached a new stage of independence.
The shake-up hurts. It’s uncomfortable. I often experience anger, frustration, stress, and sundry other ugly feelings.
But after I’m shaken and put back down, a beauty is revealed that is otherwise hidden and dormant. This beauty is what James talks about in his New Testament book: “Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors” (1:2-3, The Message).
Without God’s help, my true colors under pressure are not always what I’d classify as beautiful. It’s just not my natural response to pain and discomfort. But when I trust him to have his loving way in my life, to care for my soul in the midst of the shake-up, a breathtaking scene develops. Who I was made to be – a reflection of God’s goodness and his glory – comes to life.
The next time you feel shaken and rattled around, go shake a snow globe, and remember as the glitter and snow swirl that God is working in you to reveal the true beauty of whom he created you to be.