Scribbles & the Sovereignty of God
“You’ll just have to wait and see, momma” my three-year-old exclaimed when I asked what he was drawing. After a few minutes of carefully choosing colors, considering placement, and focusing intently, he proudly held up a page full of what looked like scribbles to me. However, in his vivid imagination, the squiggles at the top were airplanes and the chaotic, mismatched lines I saw were actually zoo animals waving at the plane above. I needed his help to see and to know what the strokes he worked hard on were made to create.
Lately, it’s felt like a lot of what is going on around me is squiggles and chaotic lines. Uncertainty, a lack of clarity, and a world in chaos seems to be the norm. However, I was reminded those squiggles aren’t squiggles to God, and what seems like chaos is still a means to accomplish God’s purposes and plans. He sees the picture because He created it. Reliance on Him helps us to interpret and understand the lines as they’re drawn.
The disciples experienced a similar lack of perspective in Mark 4:35-41.
That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.” Leaving the crowd behind, they took Him along, just as He was, in the boat. There were also other boats with Him. A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”
He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.
He said to His disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”
They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey Him!”
It’s easy to see the stark contrast between Jesus and the disciples here. Jesus is peacefully sleeping while the disciples believe they are about to drown. Jesus speaks with authority, while the disciples speak out of fear. Jesus understands who He is, while the disciples still lack faith.
The men in this boat had seen Jesus perform miracles, they had heard His teaching, and they had left everything to follow Him, yet they focused on their current circumstances to the point their faith failed.
“Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” Occasionally, I read these words as if they were spoken straight to me. I too have seen the faithfulness of God over and over again, and still fear in the midst of uncertainty. If only I would fix my eyes on the One who calms the storm.
Friend, are you fearing your circumstances over placing your faith in the One who calms storms today? He is sovereign over Covid-19, your job uncertainty, relationship struggles in your house, unmet longings, the upcoming election, financial instability, and every other “storm” you’re facing--no matter the size.
Don’t face the storm with the fear of the disciples, instead, face it knowing you serve a God who is in control of it all. Believers, the Spirit guides us through life’s storms, and the Word lets us know the war is already won. We can walk in faith and confidence today!
This poem by Corrie ten Boom, a woman who helped many Jews escape the Nazis during the Holocaust, hangs in my living room as a reminder of the sovereignty of God. Hopefully, it will help to remind you who is in control of your life today, too.
“Life is but a Weaving” (The Tapestry Poem) by Corrie ten Boom
My life is but a weaving
Between my God and me.
I cannot choose the colors
He weaveth steadily.
Oft’ times He weaveth sorrow;
And I in foolish pride
Forget He sees the upper
And I the underside.
Not ’til the loom is silent
And the shuttles cease to fly
Will God unroll the canvas
And reveal the reason why.
The dark threads are as needful
In the weaver’s skillful hand
As the threads of gold and silver
In the pattern He has planned
He knows, He loves, He cares;
Nothing this truth can dim.
He gives the very best to those
Who leave the choice to Him.
*Originally published on QSBC Women’s Blog
