I was given a 5,000-piece puzzle as a gift. I had never built one as big, and I figured since I received it, I should take a stab at it. I soon realized that God was going to use something so trifling to deepen my faith in Him.
God has been teaching me about the importance of living one day at a time. It has been an almost four-decade process of maturing and growing in dependence upon His Son. Since I liked focusing on the future, you know, plan things where I set my expectations upon how I would like things to look and be, I found myself anxious and frustrated when my days didn’t play out like I planned. Unfortunately, anxiety still finds its way in, but I am not nearly as frustrated, and I have learned to turn to God and let Him lead me. He has turned my heart into a Galatians 5 freedom fighter.
Are you looking to be set free? Study Galatians 5 and let God transform your heart and mind.
In my early years of faith, God gave me a husband, and He put us in foreign land to begin teaching me to trust God, believe Jesus, and follow the Holy Spirit. Marriage and moving to a state that I had never lived in before were vehicles of faith that God has used to help me see my need for Jesus.
Fast forward to 2026 and I am staring at a mound of puzzle pieces. “This is going to take a while,” I thought. So, I began finding the edge pieces first. I had to put up 2 long tables to house all the pieces. I even had friends come over to help. While they did a great job getting it started, not much progress was made; so many pieces were left lying around. “Hmmm, how long will I let this take over my dining area before I call it quits?”
Perseverance.
“Carol, I want you to complete this puzzle.”
I have learned in my journey in trusting God that His way to abiding in His presence comes in the form of “continued effort to do or achieve something despite difficulties, failure, or opposition.” (merriam-webster.com) The Bible speaks of this attribute that aids in deepening your faith. James 1:12 says, “Blessed is he man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love Him.” Galatians 6:9 says, “And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.”
While building a puzzle is trivial and lacks importance, God uses even the simplest of things to teach you spiritual things that aid in your life on this side of heaven. Never underestimate what God will use to mature you. He uses all things to bring about His glory.
I sat. I stared at pieces, so many of them. “Would my friends really mind if I don’t build this,” I thought? There is so much going on in the picture. How will I ever put this together? And in my ponderings, I recognize that voice, the Voice that has spoken to me all my life. “Carol, you know how to tackle this. How have you learned to walk with Me?”
“Okay God. Take a little at a time. Don’t focus on the big picture. Focus on one thing at a time.”
“Carol, study the map.” Thankfully, the puzzle company gave a huge printout of the photo. It was very accurate, so it made figuring out where the piece(s) went a lot easier. And little by little I was putting pieces together. God never leaves you to figure out faith on your own. He gives you a map called the Bible and He gives you Himself in the form of the Holy Spirit to walk with you. He is your helper, counselor, and friend. And He gives you one day a time to learn. As each day goes by, your faith in God becomes clearer and more familiar.
I can’t believe it, but four weeks later, I completed the puzzle! I thought for sure it was going to take me months. Unbeknownst to Rob and me in those weeks, my father-in-law had a health scare where Rob needed to go and take care of him. While he was away, the puzzle became holy, busy work to keep my mind occupied. God is good, even in hard times. God is faithful, even in trivial moments. God is loving, even when life doesn’t make sense.
God knows. God knows what lies before me. I do not have to prepare myself mentally in what lies ahead. Knowing that God is who He says He is in the pages of His Word is enough for me. He has proven Himself over the years, and today, I can stop the mental preparation like I used to do and replace it with what I do know. And what I know is that God is with me and He goes before me providing for me and protecting me.
Today, what lies before you that God wants to deepen your faith with? It might be as trivial as a puzzle. Don’t overlook what God has sitting in front of you. He uses all things to lure you to Himself. Ecclesiastes 3:1 says, “For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven.”
I will end this with James 4:13-16, “Look here, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we are going to a certain town and will stay there a year. We will do business there and make a profit.’ How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog, it’s here a little while, then it’s gone. What you ought to say is, ‘If the Lord wants us to, we will live and do this or that.’ Otherwise, you are boasting about your own plans, and such boasting is evil.”
Carol J German 