The Spider's Web

D

uring the summer months of 1991, I was doing final coursework for my teaching certification.  I took the courses at Appalachian State University, in Boone, North Carolina. Boone is a small college town nestled in the heart of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The town is not far from the Blue Ridge Parkway, one of the prettiest stretches of highway in the entire country.

One of my courses focused on presenting instruction, including the making of lesson plans and the delivering of a specific body of knowledge to my students.  A large portion of teaching involves reflection on the material being taught and the way the teacher intends to deliver it.  The teacher must know what the outcome will be so that all the instruction will be aimed toward that one goal.

Every day we had to keep a journal.  Our instructor wanted us to spend an hour walking in the woods, driving along the Parkway, or looking at a vista.  She then wanted us to reflect on our day and place our thoughts in the journal which she would read at the end of the course.  I wasn’t too sure about this idea at first but I soon learned to enjoy this time and I looked forward to it.

I found a beautiful trail just off the Parkway that wound through a dense grove of trees and ended at a beautiful waterfall.  One afternoon at the waterfall, I sat on a rock and just listened to the falling water.  The sound was almost deafening as hundreds of gallons of water per minute tumbled over the rock outcropping and crashed several feet below.  In the rising mist, not far from the fall itself, I saw a spider methodically building her web.  She was not deterred from her task by the falling water but continued her knitting, piecing together the various parts of her web.

I watched in utter amazement!  Very carefully and expertly, the spider joined one silk thread to another until a finished web emerged. She then climbed to the center of the web to rest and wait.  Her legs were sprawled out in every direction of the web.  Anything flying into the web or brushing against it immediately alerted the spider and she ran to that particular area of the web to take care of business. 

There is a great biblical truth to be found in the spider’s web.  Although the spider is blind, she succeeds in putting together one of nature’s most intricate architectural designs.  She knows exactly how the web is to be constructed and how it will look once it is finished.  That afternoon at the waterfall, the design was lost on me.  I had no idea what the web would look like nor how the spider would put it all together; but when she was finished, it was far prettier and more intricate than I had ever imagined.

God’s ways are just like this. He is always working, always putting things together, and always accomplishing His purposes.  Although we can’t see the end result, God knows exactly what it will be.  This fact is found in Isaiah 46:9-10, “Remember the former things of old, For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me, Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things that are not yet done, Saying, "My counsel shall stand,  And I will do all My pleasure,'”

These are great words of comfort, especially when things in the world seem to be upside down.  We often wonder if everything is falling apart and we also wonder if God is aware of what’s going on!  Rest assured He is.  He knows all that is happening and He is still in control.  If He takes notice of birds when they fall, how much more is He aware of what is happening in the world and in our individual lives?  The last part of this verse reminds us of the immutability of God’s word and that everything is done in accordance with His will.

The next time you have occasion to watch a spider do her work, take a few moments and observe.  In her activity be reminded that God holds the individual threads of your life.  He knows where they should be anchored and in exactly what order they should be joined.  He is busy knitting every facet of your life into an intricate and beautiful piece of architecture that will bring glory and honor to Him.  What are you learning from the spider’s web today?