When I was growing up, my family went on trips that offered something educational. One year we visited Philadelphia and the Liberty Bell. On another occasion, we drove to the Great Smoky Mountains in North Carolina.
On every trip, we took pictures.
Lots of pictures.
Many of these photos now reside in family albums and scrapbooks where we can look back and remember special memories from those trips. One of those was from a trip to Washington DC. Inside the album, there is a picture of the Washington Monument I took. At first glance, it looks as if a solar eclipse has occurred, since the monument and all objects in the photo are black. However, there is a special story about how the picture came to be. Our family was walking towards the Capitol building when I noticed that the sun was low enough in the sky that I might be able to take a cool picture. I lined up the monument so that the sun was completely behind it, then snapped the shot. It came out much better then I anticipated.
Every photograph has a story to tell. However, it doesn’t always tell the whole story. For example, photos can’t always tell the stories surrounding a picture—why it was taken or the events that happened before and afterwards. That responsibility falls to those who were in attendance at the time. Photo albums, then, are significant because they remind us to remember those moments and share them with people we hold dear.
It’s what I call the Law of the Flash: God takes the pictures of our life so we can share them with others. In essence, those “frozen moments” are akin to signposts that are placed along the path of one’s life journey. This is a good thing. The prophet Jeremiah notes: “Set up road signs; put up guideposts. Take note of the highway, the road that you take” (Jeremiah 31:21 [NIV]).
God has created a distinctive photo album for each of his people, filled with various photographs he has taken along the way. Sometimes the pictures are of good times and wonderful memories, such as when a person comes to know Jesus personally as Forgiver and Leader. Sometimes the photos are of difficult times where a person had to rely on him completely. Still other shots are of situations and moments that do not seem to have a reason for being in the album. But since God is the photographer of our lives, he knows why, and when the time is appropriate, he will reveal the reason (and the story) behind the picture. After all, he wants the best for his people and knows that everything in one’s life happens for a reason (cf. Romans 8:28).
For example, when I open the photo album God’s created about my life, there are some rather interesting pictures inside. One is a photo of a hotel in Florence SC with a lit “Vacancy” sign. The reason for the picture involves my family and a hurricane. When Hurricane Hugo set its sights on the South Carolina coast in September 1989, we stopped at the hotel to ride out the storm. My father went inside, only to return a few minutes later and inform us that the last room had just been taken. Our trip eventually landed us at my aunt’s house near Augusta GA, but the picture’s significance was demonstrated a few days later as we drove by the hotel again on the freeway. My mother looked out the window and gasped, “There’s a reason why we didn’t stay there.” I turned and saw that there was no hotel left. During the hurricane, a tornado had destroyed the place. It was a not-too-subtle reminder of God’s protection for our family.
There are other photos inside, each with their own unique story that needs to be shared. A shot of a 70,000 pound crane destroying my car on the way to graduate school (my ‘official’ transition from college to real life). A photo of the San Francisco skyline, seen through the windows of a chapel (my commitment to serving God in whatever capacity he desires). An older picture of a hotel room, with two students and a youth director present (when I became a follower of Jesus). My wedding photo is in there too, as well as a picture of the best birthday present I’ve ever received—my daughter.
As God reveals the story behind the pictures of one’s life, it is not simply enough to keep that knowledge to oneself. Just as a photo album is meant for being shared with others, our treasury should be shared with each person we come into contact with. That way, one can learn the meaning behind why a person resembles Jesus in their words and actions.
Keep in mind that God also has a photo album for those who do not know him. He longs to reveal it to them, but they have to believe in Jesus first in order to truly begin understanding; otherwise, they end up creating stories that may not necessarily go with God’s photos in their album.
So what does your photo album look like? Are there pictures inside that you have no idea why God’s included them? What stories can you tell through your album? Is there anyone in particular you need to share your photos with?
Think about those questions today, and keep in mind the Law of the Flash.
And as the Lord refreshes you, may you, in turn, refresh others.
“Not for our sake, God, no, not for our sake,
but for your name’s sake, show your glory.
Do it on account of your merciful love,
do it on account of your faithful ways.”
--Psalm 115:1-2 (Message)
“Listen to your life. See it for the fathomless mystery that it is.”
--Frederick Buechner 1
1 Buechner, Frederick. Now and Then. Harper SanFrancisco, San Francisco CA, 1983: 87.
All material copyright 2006 J. Alan Sharrer. No part of this message may be reproduced—other than the forwarding of the original, unaltered message—without express written permission.
