How Does Life Work?

This past Thursday we received a large blessing in the mail thanks to FedEx. Packaged within five small boxes laid stress reducer devices. Devices in the form of organized, bound, and colored textbooks for each student. Although the shipping across the pond cost more than the priceless treasures themselves, we have been relieved nonetheless. No more photocopying and stapling to stay organized and on track with the schedule. No more lost papers or mutilated packets. The replacement of color in the text and pictures has surely brought happiness to the classroom.  Intrigue has bubbled forth from the students in many forms; most notably through a wide array of questions.  Questions for example and I quote, “If Adam named all of the animals in the world how did he name all of the fish in the ocean? Did he make a tube thing and goggles and go down there with a piece of paper or something?” Or better yet and my favorite so far, “After you are done with college school do you just go on the street and sit there with a newspaper until you find a job or something to do?” It’s as if some of life’s greatest mysteries lie just beyond the reach of clarification.

It’s questions like these that bring a smile to my face and chuckle to my laugh as I recount the character of Eli from the children’s fictional tale You Are Special by the vibrant author Max Lucado. In the story, the main character Punchinello, repeatedly visits Eli’s cabin for comfort and guidance on minor life issues he’s been having. Eli, who portrays a comparable character with God, calms Punchinello’s worries and frustrations with the words that he speaks and the smile he chooses to let gleam. The combination of his deep, bold, resonating voice spoken with a calm but confident disposition added with his reassuring tender smile, reminds Punchinello and the reader that everything will be ok. In short, the entire story makes for a great illustration of God’s character.

As I try to relate how I think God would respond to petty issues we as humans work ourselves into or the silly words that we sometimes say, I can just picture a similar smile with a similar chuckle on His face. Able to see past the miniscule confusion and conflicts we as imperfect human encounter, He sits back and patiently awaits His turn to speak a few words of wisdom. As He begins to converse with the hurt or confounded, I’m most solidly convinced that He receives great appreciation and enjoyment as the worry and puzzlement begins to fade. The silly but sincere questions the children ask, seem to relax life in general through their honest intentions while providing an ‘at ease’ mood to the setting. It is only because of our shortly longer-lived lives and wiser intellect that we recognize the humor amongst the insignificant confusion. When the students scratch their head’s in utter bewilderment while glancing upon a chuckling teacher, it is ‘that smile’ and ‘that chuckle’ that begins to make a transformation in the children’s understanding. They begin to understand the uncertainty in uncertainties and why there are questions that cannot be immediately countered with answers. One intelligently faceted design in life is the experience that opens doors and unlocks the mysteries to the questions asked during earlier years. This has been my on going blessing as a result to receiving the instructional materials.