Life Is Bigger Than A Single Moment

I was getting ready to go grocery shopping with my mother the other day. I grabbed my keys and clipped them to the belt loop of my shorts as I always do. I gathered up my wallet, my water, double-checked that I had my coupons, and headed for the door. The second I opened it to leave I realized I didn't have my keys. I ran back upstairs to find my keys hanging on the hook where I always keep them. Now, some of you who know me may shrug this off and say, "Yeah, she can be pretty scatter-brained." And I can. But I wanna tell you, not this time. I know. For a fact. I clipped my keys to my belt loop. And it got me thinking about time. What could it have been about those twenty seconds it took me to back track? Was God saving me from something, or saving me for something? And yes, I do believe it was a "God thing."

Scott and I witnessed an accident today. A guy was pretty badly hurt. How could five seconds -- three seconds either way have changed his life? How did one simple, seemingly insignificant decision determine the course of events today? What if he had decided to stay home? or go a different route? What if the other driver had stopped just a second longer at the Stop sign three blocks back? or caught the green light at the last intersection? What if Scott and I had decided to shorten our walk? or leave just a minute later?

Some people think that God is like an investor, laying out His capital, relying on someone or something else to do all the menial labor. He sits up on His cloud, and only checks in on His investment every so often, just relaxing and lying back reaping all the dividends. Outside of the fact, I can't imagine there'd be huge returns on a world full of people who seem bent on killing one another, I don't believe God is that impersonal. Matthew 10:29-31 tells us:

"Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows."

 Sparrows like to nest in the ivy on the front of our house.  Not some cute little family of Dad and Mom, little baby sparrow and, maybe her protective older brother. No, family after family. Flitting in and out constantly. Dive-bombing me when I go to leave the house. Chirping loudly and frantically at all hours. Dropping dead babies out of the nest, right onto our doorstep. And let's not mention their bathroom habits. Dir-T. But God cares. He knows when that littlest one leaves the nest and soars into the blue -- or doesn't. How much more will He care for you?

The decisions we make everyday, some of which seem inconsequential either way, affect things, affect us, affect others. Let's live like life is bigger than a single moment, and let's be thankful we have a caring, loving God who sees the big picture.