When All Seems Hopeless

I’m a big fan of vinyl albums. With real records, it matters where you drop the needle. Set it in the wrong place and you get the wrong song. 

The same is true in all aspects of our lives. If we drop the needle in the wrong place, we’ll miss the meaning of what’s really going on.

When a situation seems hopeless, it’s a sign I’m dropping the needle in the wrong place. My attention is so stuck in this moment of chaos, I miss the larger story. It’s like only listening to the middle thirty seconds of a song—or walking out in Act 2 of a three-act play and believing there’s nothing more. When we do, we miss the creator’s perfectly designed progression of the work.

That’s why I’ve posted this saying in my office: “Everything will be ok in the end. If it’s not ok, it’s not the end.” Though I’m not sure who created this image, I’ve had it for almost two decades. It captures the promise of the book of Revelation—where God sets everything right and makes all things new—in a few words.  

If you’re going through a hard season now, I encourage you to print this image out as a reminder. Because it’s not the end. It just may look like it, depending on where you drop the needle. 

This reading was crafted to encourage your pursuit of story and creativity with God. Your donation makes this crowd-funded initiative possible. You can support it via PAYPAL (or by check to Allen Arnold at PO Box 62841, Colorado Springs, CO 80962).

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