"Ruining the Surprise..."

Though this entry will speak and site very Christian ideas, if you're not yet a believer, please don't exit this post thinking it doesn't apply. Trust me, it is for anyone who enjoys the few, true good things, that will ever happen in our lives...

One of the pointless things (and there have been PLENTY), that I have bragged about over the years, is my ability to somehow guess the contents of a Christmas or Birthday gift, before it even having been given to me. Especially from my mom, sometimes even from my wife. Having gotten much older, having a child myself (via the Mrs. of course!), and developing a true sense of selflessness, I have found it the better to play along with the surprise for the sake of those blessing me with the gift. But lately though, I have come to the understanding that I have been shorting myself as well in these "conquests".

Have you ever sat around the tree one Christmas morning, already knowing the contents of the package, opened the festive gift-wrap, put on the universal symbol of surprise (the raised eyebrows), and though you loved the gift immensely, felt slightly cheated because you missed that "moment of surprise"? We, especially as Christians, constantly forsake our trust in God, in looking so hard for Him to reveal every mystery, every plan, and even the "big picture" of what the Lord has in store for us. In doing this we likewise hurt not only God's heart, but really rob ourselves of some of the great gifts and surprises our Master is waiting to to bestow upon us.

Of course there are also all those "unpleasant" surprises in life that seem to pop off at the most inopportune times. I remember running around, late for church, one Sunday: our Jack Russell Hercules left me a wonderful, wet, squishy going away present in my penny loafer. It wasn't the normal disgusting gift most of us receive from our pets and children... It was quite worse. Ahh the little blessings in life, this one in the form of a dead, chewed, soggy, mommy mouse. Now I say mommy mouse because, well, I'm sure you get why. There's always those little things even in the middle of an otherwise perfect day. Ever been driving down a country road, enjoying the beauty of God's creation, and following that moment of sheer contentment, followed it up with the perfect "stretch and yawn"? LOVE those! However I'm referring to bad surprises at this time aren't I? Just yesterday I was driving to my parents' house, while my son and I were immersed in song and worship to God, along came one of those fantastic "stretch and yawns". I reached my arms to the sky, tensed the muscles across my body with a fabulous stretch, and having already begun the yawn sequence to this perfect procedure, breathed in that sweet country air. Just fractions of an instance too late, my throat took in, and my lungs filled with that "unpleasant surprise". All too late to cease the deep breath, about 10 yards in front of me, right in the middle of rural route 108, laid an x-skunk. Nothing can put the brakes on an impromptu automobile worship service quicker than a mouth and chest full of dead rodent.

God is so full of those little "good surprises" though! The Bible is full of them. Some of the biggest and best moments in the Bible are examples of God showing up and truly surprising His people. Can you imagine the "spiritual surprise party" the two Mary's walked into early that Sunday morning?! They went to view the body of their fallen loved one, and were greeted with an earthquake and an angel. They ventured to continue mourning their loss, and instead arrived at the biggest celebration this world has ever known! Jesus could've said, "meet me at the third tree from the grassy hill at 12:15pm. Meet you there, don't be late." But He didn't, He made the biggest surprise he could! Earthquakes, booming voices from the Heavens, bright blazing angels, an immovable stone tossed to the side. And we make a big deal out of hiding behind a couch or in a closet, and jumping out yelling, "SURPRISE!!" My favorite, and what I believe to be one of the most telling examples of Jesus' character in His quest to surprise His people, is the fact that He was watching all this thrilling sequence unfold hidden from them just a short distance away. He laid in wait to see the look of shock, surprise, and delight on the glowing faces of two of His true friends. Wow, what a tale of how He feels towards His people. Jesus at this point was omniscient, all-knowing, and had just returned from death. He could've watched from the throne, but He didn't did He? He had to be right there in the trees, striving to catch of glimpse of the surprised countenances of those He loves.

We see this again, maybe even in a funnier instance later on in the Bible. Remember the disciples fishing in John 21? They were 100 yards out to sea and fishing with no success. Just then a fellow fisherman on shore yelled out to them to toss out their nets again, catching more fish than the nets could contain. It was only after this surprise miracle that they realized this "expert fisherman" was their Lord Himself! In fact, Peter, so blown away by the surprise, jumped off the boat and swam in the embrace Jesus, followed by the rest of His friends. Jesus could've just dropped and appeared on the boat, or flown down from heaven for a quick game of "made you look." But that's not what He did. He takes such delight in the happiness and fulfillment of those He loves that He doesn't always give us ask for, but what we need; He doesn't always let us in on the big picture of this journey through life, because He wants us to enjoy the moment and be surprised; and He NEVER allows us to become so mundane and bored, with the everyday ticks and tocks of our lives, without pulling out all the bells and whistles for our "little surprises."

I had the opportunity this week to be part of something very special. I didn't even go for myself, I went because my work asked me to, because my wife wanted to go, and because I needed to learn some things to pass on to our church volunteers. That's why I was so pleasantly blown away with surprise, when God showed up, and did something just FOR ME. In the midst of over 1000 people, God surely doing things in the hearts of each of them, He sought me out as well, meeting a need I didn't even know I had. As I looked over at Karrie, I then saw a look on her face, a beauty that I had somehow forgotten. In that instant, I fell in love with both God and my wife, all over again. God could've told me, hey, go to this conference, and on day 3, I will show you something. He could've just reminded me of this aspect of my bride right there in my house. But God takes such joy in surprising us in our day to day life. Just like the joy of watching your child open that Christmas gift they have been hounding you for the past 4 months. Or like the husband who studies the face of his wife as she opens those diamond earrings. Or maybe even that red-faced look of expectation, passion, and desire a husband gets when he trudges his way to the bedroom to sleep after a long day, only to be ever so surprised by his wife's waiting for him, in that favorite pair of "naughties". There's something that happens to us in that moment of surprise, where the fear of the unknown meets the excitement of the future, that is unmatched by any other happening in our lives.

The point of this I guess, is to just remind us, not to be so anxious for God to reveal every part to us. Stop spending the countless, sleepless hours, worrying and wondering what the days to come will bring. Having it all figured out is no way to live. Allow and trust God enough to know that like He said in Jeremiah, "I know the plans I have for you. Plans for a hope, and plans for a blessed future!" Stop trying to ruin all of life's surprises, let's not leave things to chance, but leave things in the Hands of our loving God. He takes such pleasure in surprising us.