These are a few things that I pulled from An Essay of Man:
This text reminds us that there is a greater picture and purpose in life that is not within our sights. While what we do may seem miniscule, our actions and our sufferings have an effect on the world around us. Line six says that we are in " a mighty maze! but not without a plan". To our perspective, we're trapped, but if we could get a bird's eye view of our situation, we would obtain the knowledge of how everything is going to lay out for us. I believe Pope was showing us in this illustration that to know all of the answers, we would have to be on the same level of God. It is with pride and arrogance that we try to understand this view that was not meant for us. Through this we justify our own blinded way and blame God for every misfortune in our lives. Line 188 in this text shows how foolish we are for not enjoying what we have been given because we expect to gain everything. I think the Point Pope is trying to make here is that God is in control, He has a perfect plan, and we should be grateful to be a part of it...
p.s. I posted on Nick Haampton's blog
When I read this, I couldn't stop thinking about what it says in James chapter one about counting it all joy when you fall into various trials. When we think about that statement from a human standpoint, it seems almost insane. However, if we allow ourselves to step back and think about what God sees happening in the midst of our suffering, counting it all joy makes a little more sense. We can't see the destination of our journey before we get there because we are not God. However, like it says in the next few verses, we can be confident in the fact that the testing of our faith produces patience, and that is what we are called to take joy in. Life is definitely a mighty maze that we have no way of seeing all at once, and we may very well get lost in it at times. However, God knows where He's leading us, and that simple fact is what we are called to take joy in.
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