Wednesday, January 17, 2024
I recently read a twisted, thriller mystery called Wrong Place, Wrong Time by Gillian McAllister. Not only is the story fascinating, but it’s told backwards. The opening scene is a surprise murder, but that scene is how the book ends. The author starts with the ending, and then takes the reader and the main character backwards. The main character moves backwards, but everyone else in the story is unaware that she was reliving days she already had been through. This backwards time travel was what allowed her to piece together and solve the mystery, and to prevent the crime from ever happening. Without spoiling the ending, or should I say beginning, I’ll just tell you that the whole schematic is ingenious.
I tend to have a love/hate relationship with surprise. I like surprises if they seem good, and I hate them if they seem bad. However, every so-called bad surprise has ended up surprising me. Over time, bad surprises become valuable, thus good. Some people never learn of the value, the transformation, or the growth opportunities of a “bad” surprise.
The hardest part of the future is becoming friendly with it. To build your faith, examine your history. When you tell your story backwards, you see how it was divinely ordered, even the “bad” surprises. If it works backwards, then it works forwards. How many times do we need to be reassured before we trust that everything works for our greater good? You can trust in your future, and your worry has no effect on it. Worry merely spoils today. When you’re feeling blue about your future, study your past and rest assured. You’re greatest friend is in the unknown. Work backwards, and you’ll see how divinely orchestrated it always is and always will be.