Puzzle Pieces

"Hi, Mom," said Clara as she walked into her mom's hospital room. It seemed so strange to see Mom in a hospital bed. "You feeling okay?" Mom nodded. "They only did tests today. The surgery isn't until tomorrow, but don't worry. I'm in very good hands." She pointed to a bag Clara was carrying. "What did you bring?""I brought a puzzle." Clara dumped the pieces onto Mom's bedside table. "It's just a small one, and I figured we could put it together.""Good idea!" said Mom, and they began searching for edge pieces.As Clara worked, so many questions filled her mind. Will Mom's surgery be really painful for her? Will it make her well? And the scariest question of all… Could Mom die during the surgery? But she didn't want to worry her mother, so she kept her thoughts to herself."I can't figure out where this piece goes," Clara said, frowning.Mom smiled at her. "I'm glad you brought a puzzle. It's kind of like my life right now. Being sick and needing surgery is like that piece of the puzzle. You don't know how it fits in the picture, and I don't know where this experience fits into the picture of my life. But knowing that God promises to work everything for good and seeing how He's already put some other pieces of my life together helps me trust Him now too." "What do you mean?" asked Clara."Well, one example is the way God worked when Dad lost his job," said Mom. "We couldn't understand how that would fit in the picture of our lives. Then God provided a job for him in this city where Dr. Campbell practices. He's the best doctor in the country for the surgery I need.""God is taking care of you, right?" said Clara slowly. "And He'll take care of you tomorrow, won't He?"Mom nodded. "Even if the surgery isn't successful, I know He'll take care of me because I belong to Jesus and will spend eternity with Him." She squeezed Clara's hand. "I don't understand how this fits into my life, but He does, and I trust Him to put the picture together for me. Will you trust Him too?" Clara nodded. She was finally able to give her mother a little smile. -Katherine R. Adams