Thursday, April 26, 2012

Thursday’s Devotion: Expecting the Unexpected



Mark 6:48-49  He saw his disciples struggling. They were trying to row forward, but the wind was blowing against them. Very early in the morning, he came to them, walking on the lake. He intended to pass by them.  When they saw him walking on the lake, they thought he was a ghost and they screamed.

Sunday afternoon as I backed out of my carport to return to the church for a meeting I suddenly heard a child’s voice.  A little boy, maybe 5 or 6 years old was jumping around in my driveway!  There are never children in my driveway unless Skye who lives next door comes down with her parents. The boy ran back up the hill to Skye’s house.  I thought that had he been a few feet over I could have easily hit him.  I wasn’t expecting a child or anything to be behind my car.  Several days later as I picked up branches knocked down by the prior night’s strong winds I spotted an orange object at the base of my tree. It was an outdoor Christmas tree light bulb.  How did it get there in April?  We don’t have any like that and it hadn’t been there before.  The next day I returned home to find a chewed up Styrofoam takeout box (not ours) in my living room. I determined that this was going to be a week to expect the unexpected.  Over the years I have observed that the people who are the most likely to have a discernible experience with the divine are those who expect that to happen.  We often don’t see what we are not looking for.  Just as Jesus came toward the disciples by walking on the water, God comes to us in unexpected ways and at unexpected times. Turning on our radio enables us to hear the music, likewise experiencing God often depends on being tuned to Him.  Pray and wait expectantly for an answer.

Gracious and holy God.  We are often amazed that you, the Creator of the universe would speak to us in such personal ways.  Help us to stay attuned to your presence in our lives.  We ask in the name of the One who came and ministered and died and rose again in unexpected ways. Amen.

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