Our daughter-in-law’s alarm sounded at 4:00 a.m. a few Sundays ago. She needed to work on writing a grant, assigned to her on Friday and due the following Wednesday.
Of course, no time during the work-day had been provided. (How can bosses consider such directives appropriate?)
H. intended to accomplish several hours of work before church. But when she opened her laptop, a message proclaimed that a key code was needed.
WHAT key code?
H. checked her list of passwords; no code. And nothing she tried allowed her access. Finally she woke our son E., who’s quite computer-savvy. But he too was stymied.
H. got dressed and drove to her office to work there, frustrated by the time lost. E. continued his efforts to unlock the computer. He called Apple, but they couldn’t help without the code.
E. texted us to pray, then kept searching for a solution. About twenty minutes later he found what he called a back door, but still needed a password not on their lists.
“Lord, what might we have set as a password?” he prayed.
He sat for a few quiet moments, and suddenly, a scene from the first Ghostbusters movie popped into his head, when one of the characters used a password. E. typed it in:
And H.’s computer came back to life.
No doubt you tell stories of happy-surprises within your family, illustrating God’s attentiveness, generosity, power, and more.
But not all surprises fall into the “happy” category.
UNHAPPY SURPRISES
They also come in the form of cancer diagnoses, family members announcing a divorce, or the company’s decision to relocate you across the country.
Doubts of God’s attentiveness and power begin to fester. What then? Debbie Macomber would challenge us to:
And Charles Spurgeon offers this nourishing faith food:
“We have gone through many trials. They have never been to our detriment but always to our advantage . . . He who has been with us in six troubles will not forsake us in the seventh. What we have known of our faithful God proves that he will keep us to the end.”
MIXED-BAG SURPRISES
A third category of surprises includes those that cause delight and doubt.
For example:
L. had invited our family over for dinner a few weeks before we’d be moving across-state.
With her gift for interior design and crafting abilities, L. had created an inviting home. She showed me her guest room, recently refurbished and exuding a warm welcome, given the restful color-scheme, well-coordinated furniture, and attractive linens.
I oohed and aahed over L.’s surprise-display of her handiwork, truly happy for her success and the wherewithal to make it happen.
But I did wonder why she didn’t ask, “Nancy, are you feeling all right? You look a little green!”
Surely my face betrayed the envy in my heart for that beautiful room.
You see, we’d recently visited the parsonage* that our family of five would soon be living in—small, sorely lacking storage, with long-outdated furniture, and no color-scheme at all.
Not only was I struggling to say good-bye to a loving congregation, but also to the pleasant, new-to-us parsonage the current church had purchased and furnished just three years previously.
Perhaps you too have struggled, when others enjoy circumstances you desire. Again, the question arises:
What then?
Since that night in L.’s home I’ve learned:
That would include prayer for the person we envy, that they might flourish. No doubt you’ve heard “prayer changes things.” That includes the person praying.
In addition, we can be attentive to what God has supplied and express gratitude for all he is and all he does—like the unknown Puritan did who wrote this prayer:
“When I think upon and converse with Thee, ten thousand delightful thoughts spring up, ten thousand sources of pleasure are unsealed, ten thousand refreshing joys spread over my heart, crowding every moment of happiness.”
* * * * * * * * *
I praise you, God, for the numerous happy surprises you provide. And for those times when surprise comes through difficulty, I praise you for your ministering presence, providing wisdom, grace, and strength. May I be faithful to avail myself of your enablement.
*A home provided by a church for their pastor and family, sometimes furnished.
Image credits: http://www.pickpik.com; http://www.canva.com; http://www.freerangestock.com (Enieda Nieves); http://www.ropbymhome.com (Pierce Martin); http://www.canva.com; http://www.dailyverses.net.
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From the Inside Out 