Tag God's surprise visit

Why it’s really good to expect God to show up is really not hard to understand. It benefits us because it makes us more alert to God’s interventions in our lives.

We should expect God to show up. We don’t always though. Last Saturday God showed up three times for me. Maybe I should say He surprised me. Three times!!!

Now, if you haven’t had this experience, you might not believe this but I can only share my experience with you. God surprises me often. However, by surprise, I mean I see His hand in the process. I see His hand in the circumstance.

Of course, we can choose to not believe that way. But the reason I do because every day I ask God to reveal himself to me. I expect to see Him in my circumstances and I usually do, right at the moment it happens.

But do I always? No. Not because Goed isn’t showing up, but because I’m too preoccupied and don’t always recognize Him.

First of all, we were at our cabin. I have a dear friend of many years that lives a few minutes away from there. I only see her when we are up north. We had decided that because of Covid, we probably shouldn’t get together. She is maintaining her “bubble” and I am doing the same.

But I had made her a darling DIY pumpkin and wanted to get it to her. I needed to go to Hobby Lobby anyway so I thought I would drop it off at her house. Hobby Lobby first, or drop off the pumpkin first? I wasn’t sure. Hobby Lobby first, I decided.

I. The surprises begin: number one

It had snowed just a little at the cabin but nothing was lingering on the trees right at our cabin or anything. But as I got about five miles from home and on to the highway, can I just say it was absolutely breathtaking!

The sun glowed. The snow rested on the outrageously colored leaves that had not yet fallen. On those that had, the snow laid heavily on the skeletal branches making them look outlined against the warmth in the sky.

The snow sparkled like diamonds hanging from a woman’s ear lobe, as it often does in winter but this wasn’t winter. The white snow shimmering on the trees, the glowing sun, the sparkle…….

Unreal. A blend of fall and winter. God’s surprise number one.

(a.) God’s surprise number two

I got to Hobby Lobby and as I got out of the car, I heard someone call my name. Looking in the direction of the voice, I saw my friend. It was so good to actually see her and take a few minutes to talk before she had to leave. And, of course, I gave her the pumpkin. God’s surprise number two.

But now it really gets good.

(b.) God’s surprise number three

First, of all, have I told you how much I love used book stores? More so than new bookstores. Want to know why?

Well, even if you don’t, I’m going to tell you.

Very often I will find various items tucked inside the worn pages, the older the book the more likely this will happen. A note. An inscription. A bookmark. A receipt. I love it when that happens and it happens a lot to me. (Of course, I am in used book stores a lot, so there’s that.)

Listening to a Hope@Writers podcast last week, I learned writers can hone their skills by reading poetry. The owner of the store directed me to the right area and I immediately spotted an older red book.

I picked it up and started rifling through some pages. As I got ready to close the book, I flipped back to the cover pages and spied a page where there was an inscription.

Bingo!

I looked at the handwriting and then looked again.

Not possible, I thought. No way.

But it was. It was my husband’s handwriting, an inscription for our friends, a couple we cherished then and now as well. It had been a Christmas present.

You got it. Right?

It was a gift we had purchased for my friend I had just seen at Hobby Lobby and her husband. What are the chances?

I couldn’t help but tell the store owner the whole story. She was pretty amazed as well. When I told my friend, she was astounded as well. I was pumped all the way home.

It has been often said, that you get out of life what you expect out of life. I agree.

2. Expecting God to show up

And I think the same could be said of our relationship with God. If we expect God to show up, we are much more likely to see Him when he does. God’s surprises shouldn’t really be surprises anyway, should they?

It’s kind of like when you wake up in the morning. If you decide that the day is going to be good, it probably will be. (Not counting, of course, that life can sure throw us some curves some days. Like this whole pandemic. Plus, I am not suggesting a Pollyanna attitude. I’m about as a realist as you can imagine. )

It does no good to expect the bad when we can expect the good just as easily. Click To Tweet

Life is short. We don’t like to admit it, do we? There are going to be enough bad times for all of us. We are going to experience struggles. That’s a guarantee. We are all going to experience grief as well. Again, a guarantee.

I feel it makes sense to anticipate the good for as long as we can. The more we train our minds to expect the good, the more we might well strengthen our resilience for the tough times. It’s kind of like building an inner-strength muscle.

I hope you have a really good day today and God bless.

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