Photo and Commentary ©2025 by Shelley Schurch
Sunday, June 29, 2025
Remember the early months of the global pandemic, when we were closed off from so much that we enjoyed, including churches, libraries, stores, each other’s homes?
We tried to make the best of it, both inside and outside our homes. Our neighborhood sidewalks became the canvas for artists of all ages. There’s not much I miss about those anxious days and months, but I did appreciate the hand-drawn games, messages of encouragement, and colorful drawings.
So last week I was pleased to come upon this hopscotch game when we rounded a corner on our morning walk. It was even longer than what you see in my photo, because I zoomed in to be sure you could read the word lettered partway through the hopscotch: “FINISH.”
The placement of this word seemed odd, occurring about halfway through the hopscotch. The word said, “FINISH,” but the game stretched out on either side of it.
As we walked on, my thoughts took off in two directions. My first thought was that it can be disappointing, even disheartening, to think you’ve reached the finish line, only to discover there’s more road ahead. That can happen on a hike, when you think you’re approaching the summit, only to discover there’s a valley between you and the actual peak.
That can also be true in tough seasons of life. Maybe you think you’ve conquered a bad habit, only to have it reappear. Or you’ve grieved long over a loss, and think you’re “better now,” only to be blindsided by some small incident or memory that triggers fresh grief.
But my second thought about that mid-game “FINISH” took off in a more positive direction. I remembered a quote that is attributed to Gracie Allen: “Never place a period where God has placed a comma.”
Think about some of the people we read about in the Bible, like Peter. Jesus was facing false accusations, cruel abuse, and crucifixion, and was in great need of the encouragement and love of His friends. Peter vehemently denied, three times, that he even knew his best friend.
But then Peter’s eyes met the eyes of Jesus, and his heart was broken over his betrayal. He rushed from the courtyard to a solitary place to sob out tears of repentance. He must have thought his life was as good as over; certainly his life as a disciple of Jesus was finished.
But God in His grace placed a comma in Peter’s life, not a period.
And Job! His story begins on a promising note:
There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was blameless and upright, and one who feared God and shunned evil. (Job 1:1 NKJV)
He had lived a life of integrity before God, so why did his life collapse in calamity and tragedy? In his great suffering and loss, he pours out his anguish in torrents of words.
Covered head to foot in painful boils, sitting in ashes, mourning the loss of all his children, Job certainly felt an inexplicable, cruel period had been placed in his life. But God had a comma in His hand.
Finally, in the last chapters of the book of Job, God speaks to him, challenging him with question after question after question. Job responds with humility, and God restores; “the Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning.” (Job 42:12)
Mary and Martha were sisters who loved Jesus and, with their brother Lazarus, often offered him a place of peace and hospitality. When Lazarus becomes critically ill, they send for their friend, knowing His love for their brother, and His ability to heal with a word or a touch.
But He doesn’t come. Lazarus dies. Period.
And then He does arrive, and calls Lazarus back to life! Comma!
I can think of many other people in the Bible who thought they read the word “FINISH,” only to discover God had written other plans for them.
How about you and me? I can think of more than once in my life when I thought God had placed a period, and I was heartbroken. Weathering tough, unexpected transitions, how we need to see a comma brightly shining in God’s hand, for us.
Today is one year since my sister Julie died, three time zones away from me. We who loved her experienced her death as a period. With heavy hearts, we grieved. But we also know that God has placed a comma in the lives of those who love Him, and who trust in the rock-solid truth of resurrection.
When the Lord returns, all punctuation turns to exclamation marks!
And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”
Then He who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” And He said to me, “Write, for these words are true and faithful.” (Revelation 21:3-5)
Come, Lord Jesus, come!!!