God's Surprises

 

      My all time favorite movie is, “Facing The Giants.”  There’s a scene in the movie that discusses two farmers ‘preparing fields.’  Then the question is asked of the two farmers ‘Which field will God more likely bless?’  —The answer is ‘The one who readies his field.’

There are so many ways we prepare our field.  As a gardener, it’s obvious if I expect food in my garden, then I need to plant seeds, water them and remove the weeds.  But what happens when deer come along and eat everything I’ve planted; or we have so much rain right after planting, all the seeds are washed away, or the opposite: we experience no rain and have drought.  Or perhaps a violent storm comes through after the crop is nearly ready for harvest and everything is destroyed?

Stuff happens all the time.  It’s the way of nature; the way of life.  Does this mean we should give up and not try? I believe God expects us to try and trust him for the results!  God promises to take care of those who are faithful.  Sometimes this comes in surprising ways.

We may lose all our food in our garden, but neighbors, family or strangers will provide what we need—-or those crops we thought sure were lost, will reseed and produce food just a while later than we expected!   Or the Lord will provide money or other creative means to see to our needs.

I think we forget that God is creative.  Consider all the imagination he used creating this great Universe!  If God can figure that out in ways Scientists still find a mystery, then why is it so hard for us to expect God to supply what we need in an unorthodox way?  

Sometimes we forget or assume that God doesn’t really care about all our needs and therefore don’t bother to take our problems to him unless they’re the great big ones.—-You know——  a surgery, loss of a job, serious illness, natural disaster or other catastrophic event well out of our hands. 

He cares about the ‘small stuff’ too.  In fact I’d go so far as to say, he cares about every facet of our lives.  And while he knows everything that’s going to happen, he wants communication from us; just the way we want communication from a spouse or a child, friend or neighbor!  And I believe he wants us to do our part with the gifts and abilities he’s given us to prepare ‘our field’ while we wait.  

And we need to praise him and thank him for what he’s already done, as well as, whatever it is he is going to do.  And that doesn’t mean things are going to work out just the way we planned.  God uses circumstances to teach, disciple, discipline, witness, and more.   It’s in these ‘unsteady’ times we need to be ‘more steady’ with Him!

It’s Spring and the colors that arise from the brown, bare branches can be startling, and beautiful!  Even in my expectation, I’m always surprised and filled with joy at the color!  

This same thought process can be applied to our lives.  God brings color and other surprises to our lives sometimes when we expect them and sometimes when we don’t.  He is in control and knows just what we need and when we need it!

I serve a Creative God!  I love God’s surprises.  What surprises will you see today?

Knocking At My Door

 

       I love the idea of putting a gift on someone’s door step, ringing the doorbell and then running away so the recipient has no clue who left the package.  What a great way to do something honorable without making it about us!

But what happens when someone rings your doorbell but doesn’t leave anything, and leaves without waiting for the open door?  That’s a prank mischievous children will play on folks just to create a silly diversion.  They are hidden just out of sight and giggle when the person comes to the door and no one is there.  

For the person opening the door there is frustration and maybe even a tinge of fear, since their work was interrupted and now they wonder if they might be in danger by an unknown predator, given where they live.

Ever since I was a child, I’ve seen pictures depicting God knocking at the door of our hearts.  For years I’m not sure I understood the concept but thought the pictures were beautiful and brought about a sense of awe.  Yet the idea that God would knock on my heart puzzled me when I was a child. It didn’t occur to me that He could ‘knock’ on my heart via my mind.

  As I’ve grown in my faith from my childhood, I know that God wants ‘conversation with me’ on a regular basis.  He initiates conversation by ‘knocking on my heart’s door’ to guide me, reprimand me, remind me, hold and comfort me and so much more—via my mind, conscious and sometimes through other people and through His Word, but I must be listening to hear it!

I wonder if there were times when He knocked and in my ‘selfishness’ never answered the door.  I didn’t want to be bothered or perhaps I didn’t want to hear what He had to say!  

One friend described the exchange between she and God, as an ‘only as needed basis.’  She’d check in every other month or so, just to let God know she was there, give a quick “I’m sorry God for my sins; I’m doing the best I can with what I’ve got and I’m getting by. See ya Later!”  She said her door would close before any kind of relationship could grow.

I think that’s true more often than not, perhaps even by Believers.  Our world is so mobile; we can go anywhere via a plethora of travel modes all over the world.  Add the elements of technology, sports events, ‘cultural entertainment,’ responsibilities and life circumstances, it becomes difficult to —STOP— and let God come into our lives in a true committed relationship.  Yet this is just what we need to do if we plan on growing in Christ.  Anything less than this, stifles any chance of creating a relationship with our Redeeming Savior.  

It’s a proven fact that when we don’t spend time with those we love and care about here on Earth, relationships tend to deteriorate, often into separation and then divorce, as we reach out to someone who listens to what we want to say.  That’s no less true with our relationship with God.  We can’t grow into the person God wants us to be if we don’t stay in His Word, have daily conversations via a prayer life with him and be willing to make a commitment with other Believers to join together to ‘grow each other.’

Have you heard God knocking lately?  Is it hard to stop and listen?  It’s so easy to get distracted.  But our world is changing faster than most of us can keep up.  Jesus is returning soon.  All prophesies are fulfilled to allow the Rapture.  Have you let Him in?

free pictures of knocking at the door 

God Speaks All Languages

 

      My husband and I were watching a PBS show yesterday which included a trip to Greece at Easter time!  It was beautiful.  Of course we couldn’t understand the words the people were saying, but they were celebrating the Easter story.

I have friends who have gone on mission trips to other countries where translators were required.  During the worship service the natives to the country in attendance who were Believers or just becoming Believers, were worshiping with hands raised in praise to God, while speaking in their native tongue.  While the words could not be understood by the Americans, the Spirit which filled their souls and that place, transcended all need for literal translations of what their hearts were saying.

A friend of mine tells of a time while in college, she roomed with a girl from another country.  They joined together in another place on the college campus where there were many students from different lands.  Over the months together they each learned a bit about other cultures; both differences and likenesses.  

One of the similarities my friend was really impressed with, was during the time in prayer.  She said what her friend taught her about prayer was her greatest gift, as her friend spoke to God in her own language with specific nuances to her language.   I admit, I’m not sure I’d ever thought about how God can hear all our hearts in so many languages!  

While I was in high school, if you took the ‘College Prep Track’ you were required to learn a language.  I took the ‘Business Track’ and wasn’t required to learn this and I’ll admit to being totally relieved!  I was terrified at the very thought of learning another language.  I feel like I have a decent handle on English, but was a huge coward on learning another!

I’ve since tried a little Spanish which can be learned or self-taught via an iPad or other technical device.  While Spanish was interesting, I wanted to learn Greek so that I could understand the Scriptures better—so I can identify words and get the ‘literal’ meaning of them.  Greek is very difficult, especially when you find your ‘lessons’ aren’t as deliberate as you’d like due to life schedules!  

It takes consistent, focused attention to be able to learn a new language— and I say that knowing that there are those who seem to find learning new languages as easy and normal as wearing a smile!  That is not me!  There are those who even know several languages; and even those who know many different languages!  It seems to me, my mind would be continually mixing up the words and phrases that are unique to a given language--and then getting it all wrong.

But when you think of God being able to decipher every single language in the human race, it’s amazing……but then our God is amazing.  

Not only can he decipher all these languages, he can hear our thoughts and even know if those thoughts match our hearts;—-and can hear everyone at all the same time; and can minister to us each in our own need, while all this other stuff is happening.  That’s mind-boggling. 

Waves Crashing Over Me

I am not a beach/ocean person.  I can swim, but not well and for some reason I always feel like I’m freezing when I’m in the water.  My husband teases me even about our above ground pool, because I won’t get in unless it’s warm. My husband says it’s bath water warm, and that’s when he get in, gets wet and then get out to cool off!

Now all that said, I do enjoy strolling along the beach and watching the waves come in.  I get a funny feeling when the waves come in, then go back out and take the sand I’m standing on right from under my feet, out with it when it goes!  It unnerves me a bit, since I feel like I’m losing my balance.  

I’ve watched other swimmers who get whacked by a wave and go under, laughing all the while as they come up for air.  I don’t like that at all!  I know that going further out, reduces the effect of the ‘whack’ on the body as the waves can just lift you up and then go around you.  I admit, I do like that.

A friend was sharing about how when she was a child, her dad would take her out ‘past the breakers’ and hold her hand until the gentle waves didn’t crash around her.  Sometimes she’d ride the wave on her back as she floated—while still hanging on to her dad.

Life is tough and can feel like it’s crashing and whacking us so much we feel battered and beaten, sure we’re not going to be able to make it a step further.  But like the dad who took my friend out into the deeper water, so that the waves became more gentle is our God who offers to hang on to us while we battle the waves that threaten to pull us under.

Regardless of the rise and fall of the water—-or the obstacles we face, we are never alone.  When we reach out to hang on to Jesus, we can feel the safety that can only come from a God who knows all.  When we trust him to not let us go under the wave that’s suffocating us, we can ride the waves on our back and hold on to Him, even while the thrashing continues!

There is such comfort in this knowledge.  Our lives are continually changing and we all face challenges.  It may come as a financial breakdown, health issues, the loss of a loved one, broken relationships, a natural disaster and the list could go on forever.  For each person these situations, and being able to deal with them, are crucial to keeping our emotional health in check.  

       With God, however, when we falter because of any kind of brokenness that crashes in on us like a giant wave, that threatens to pull the sand from under our feet and causes us to lose our balance; there's comfort in knowing God’s wave of steadiness, hope, love, security and unending faithfulness can buffer that which drags us under.

We serve a mighty God and I’m grateful for the Father which He is!  Let’s rejoice in that today!