The waterfall illustration

In my last blog post I mentioned the concept that God is outside of time, but this isn't an easy concept to grasp. It explains how we can both have free will and yet the future be already known. It makes it easier to understand God's much better view of a given situation and, for me at least, brings comfort in dispair.
Imagine, if you will, that the course of all history is a waterfall. Not a raging, churning waterfall, but more of a transparent sheet of water that falls consistantly. We, within the stream, can only see our immediate surroundings and only know the result of our actions after they are behind us. God, on the other hand, sees the whole fall. Everything that has been and will be is plain for Him to see. When He pokes His finger in the fall, He immediately sees the complete results; he can see the change in where the stream falls. If He is not satisfied, He can continue to alter the stream until it paints His perfect picture. We are free to choose our own way, but He already knows where it will lead us. By His grace, he will try to tell us to change our way, and if need be, place a rock in our way to divert our course.
No matter the situation, no matter how illogical it may seem to us within the stream, God's way for us is perfect, because He has a much better view than us.