Connect the Dots

Kenny and I will soon be celebrating our thirty-ninth wedding anniversary, which means my sweet son is turning thirty. This brings to mind a funny story about Colin. When he was in second grade, on the drive home from school one day the topic of conversation was our upcoming anniversary and his birthday. After some careful consideration on his part, he announced from the backseat, “Mommy, you and Daddy were married on the twentieth of December, and I was born nine days later on the twenty-nineth!”

He was so proud of himself for seeing the connection between these two events, but I, on the other hand, was flabbergasted. “Colin,” I said, “you were born nine years and nine days after Mommy and Daddy were married! Don’t leave out the nine years!”

It still makes me laugh to think about him going to school and making that announcement to his teacher, but the story does make me consider the importance of seeing the connection between major events in your life. To understand that your story is more than just dates circled on a calendar.

Yes, your story is woven into the larger story of God’s redemptive plan for this world, but you can miss it completely if you don’t take time to look for the connections. It’s like the old game we used to play in school called ‘connect the dots.’ As each dot is connected, a pattern emerges. In the same way, we too need to spend time looking back over our lives and drawing lines to connect events – milestones, big or small, good or bad - which God has used to shaped us into his image.

I have an exercise for you to do. I normally don’t give homework, but there is a first for everything. Sit down with a piece of paper and draw a straight line. On the far-left end, make a mark for the day you were born and then start filling in important events in your life by making more marks along the line. It can be anything that you see as influential in who you are, such as the day you came to know Jesus, a graduation, times that you moved, death of loved ones, new jobs, new relationships, children, bought a house, lost a friend, suffered an illness.

Once you have that done, go back over it; however, now mark the times when you know God intervened. If you want to be really creative, use a different color pen for the times when you know God was a work. Those moments in your life when he moved a mountain so you could get that job, saved you from certain disaster, or brought a blessing beyond comprehension. Don’t rush through this; take time to reflect back and look for the connections. Wait for the “aha” moments when you realize that it was God who carried you through and not dumb luck.

This exercise will hopefully help you to see God’s hand on your life, and most importantly, you will recognize that you have never been alone. Even during those seasons that made no sense at the time, he was with you every step of the way. I know in my own life God lead me through a series of difficult events which helped to prepare me for my brother’s illness and death. However, it wasn’t until much later that I could look back and see how each situation was preparing me for what was to come.

It is important to know your own history, and we even see this in Scripture. Over and over the writers retold the story of Israel. For example, I want us to look at Psalm 78. Asaph begins:

My people, hear my teaching; listen to the words of my mouth. I will open my mouth with a parable; I will utter hidden things, things from of old— things we have heard and known, things our ancestors have told us. We will not hide them from their descendants; we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, his power, and the wonders he has done. He decreed statutes for Jacob and established the law in Israel, which he commanded our ancestors to teach their children, so the next generation would know them, even the children yet to be born, and they in turn would tell their children. Then they would put their trust in God and would not forget his deeds but would keep his commands. They would not be like their ancestors— a stubborn and rebellious generation, whose hearts were not loyal to God, whose spirits were not faithful to him. (78:1-8)

You have probably heard the quote by George Santayana, "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” This is probably why God inspired Asaph to record the history of Israel. He wanted the people to remember so they wouldn’t make the same mistakes their fathers before had made. He wanted them to see that each of the milestones were not a series of unrelated events. There were connections. God was always faithful; however, when the people tested him, there were always consequences.

Paul himself makes this point in his letter to the Corinthians. After recounting several key moments in Israel’s history, Paul wrote, “These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come.” (1 Corinthians 10:11)

So, what is our warning?

I believe that we must be careful to not fall into the trap of reading God’s word like another dull history of a civilization that no longer exits. Why? Because we can be just as guilty! We point fingers at the Hebrews and shake our heads in wonder at how quickly they forgot the deliverance of the Lord. Never in a million years would we have cried out to Arron to make for us a god we could worship instead of the one true God (Exodus 32). Yet how often have we have chased after the things of the world instead of being content with the things God has given us.

Yes, Israel’s history is our history, which is why Paul said, “So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind.” (1 Corinthians 10:12-13) But to stand firm, we have to know our story. We have to know where we came from and how we got here. We need to see the connections.

In his commentary on the Psalms, George A. F. Knight wrote, “It's a staggering thought to consider that the whole history of God’s people, beginning with Abraham, Issac, Jacob and David, now passes through me and you. The ongoing movement of God in history is like a skewer that picks up and passes through a whole line of meat, so that the whole shish kebab is connected by the metal skewer.”

The history of God’s activities in this world - his handiwork – is, indeed, like a metal skewer which passes through each of us, and then our children, and then our grandchildren. We are connected; therefore, our job is to tell the next generation the wonderful things God has done.

So, work on your timeline! Look for the situations when you felt God’s presence and see how he led you to the place you are now. Also, remember that nothing happens by chance. There is purpose in everything; just ask God to give you eyes to see it.

Amen and so be it!  Lisa

Discussion Questions

What events did you put on your timeline and why? Were there any new discoveries for you?

Can you identify a personal experience where you felt you tested God's patience like the Israelites?

How can we ensure that the lessons learned from our spiritual journey are passed onto the next generation?