Skip to main content Skip to search Skip to header Skip to footer

God’s the one with the overview

- Teachers Talk


Have you ever thought you knew best how events in your life should evolve? Boy, I have. I’ve also been surprised when God had a different plan. But I’ve discovered that His outline is consistently a whole lot better than mine. You might say that God is the one with the overview. 

Discovering this fact liberated me, and helps to define my role in the unfoldment of good. God as divine Principle, source, and solitary ruler, orders and governs His entire universe in perfect harmony. He doesn’t need our help, but requires that we follow His lead.

Let me give you an example. After I spent a summer earning the money for my final year of college, a friend asked to borrow that money to feed his three small children. I loaned him all I’d earned after he promised to pay it back in a month. That didn’t happen.

Upon returning to California for school, I searched for a job—to no avail. With the first day of classes around the corner, I couldn’t pay for them, so I prayed while I redoubled my job hunt. Nothing. Finally, I just prayed, humbly asking God how I could be useful to Him, while putting aside preconceived notions as to how things might work out. I stopped looking at what would pay well and what I wanted to do, and asked how God saw this unfolding.

During my previous college year, I’d worked in a Christian Science nursing facility. Now, the thought kept coming that I needed to go there, even though working at such a great distance didn’t seem right in my final year of college. For several days, I ignored that intuition and went about the job search. But the urge kept coming, and finally I said, “All right, God. This makes no sense to me, but I’m going to go.”

I drove to the facility—not knowing why I was there. I parked, entered the front door, and began walking down a long hall to the nurses’ station. As I passed by one of the guest rooms, a familiar voice from inside called my name. I entered the room of a lovely retired school teacher, who said that she’d been wondering how to get in touch with me, then explained that every year she put a student through college. She wanted to fund my final year of college! What God had in store through this generous woman was far greater than my plan.

That experience taught me that I’m not the one with the overview—God is! If we’re trying to outline, organize, orchestrate, mold, or manipulate an event, a career, a relationship, or a life, we’re attempting to usurp God’s job. God outlines according to His law of Life, Truth, and Love. And since He’s omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent, everything is in very good hands!

You might ask, what then is our role? Our job is three-fold. First, since we are the reflection of God, our role includes imaging forth the qualities that have their source in God, such as wisdom, grace, tenderness, and patience. Second, we listen for God’s guidance in everything. And third—and this can be the hardest—we obey that leading, even when we can’t make sense of it or it deviates from our agenda. In Mary Baker Eddy’s poem, “ ‘Feed My Sheep’,” she explains:

I will listen for Thy voice, 
     Lest my footsteps stray; 
I will follow and rejoice 
     All the rugged way. (Christian Science Hymnal, No. 304)

Sometimes the way seems rugged and we feel devoid of joy. But remembering that God is the one with the overview, we’ll more readily walk in the light God provides. 

More from this blog

concord-web-promo-graphic

Explore Concord—see where it takes you.

Search the Bible and Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures