Surprises
Sometimes we feel we are all alone in our pain or loss. We keep our head down and shuffle along anticipating the worst and feeling that we are helpless in our circumstances and want to blame everyone else for what is happening.
Here's another approach to consider.
David was a yeller, a talker, a singer, a writer, and a pray-er. As a shepherd and then King, he conversed with God about everything, unedited and cried out for help. I suppose when he was alone in the countryside with his sheep, he could talk to God outloud without any worries. As a King, perhaps, he had to talk more quietly, but he didn't keep his thoughts to himself.
Listen to his conversation with God:
"When I said, "My foot is slipping," your unfailing love, Lord, supported me. When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought me joy." Psalm 94:18-19
David cried out to God..."My foot is slipping!!!" He panicked. He cried out. He called the crisis what it was and asked for help.
What is your crisis today? Is your foot slipping? What are you anxious about? It doesn't matter what your measurement of the crisis is, if it matters to you, it matters to God. He wants to hear your prayers.
There is a holy space that exists when we are honest with God about our anxieties. When we look Him in the eyes and acknowledge our fears and ask Him for help . . . something remarkable happens. When we choose to stop fighting Him or figuring things out for ourselves God has the opportunity to work and it is in this space, this holy space that God loves to surprise us.
Cry out to him today. Name your crisis. Acknowledge that you need help . . . and wait. Watch for surprises. Don't demand – just watch for them. I often say to people that when I am most needy, when I ask God for help, it's like I put my antennas up . . . way up . . . and wait for something to happen.
This is when God surprises us. But wait for it. Let God surprise you. It's better that way. It builds our faith and I believe, it gives God joy because He gets to give to us generously the way that He sees best.
Today, I pray for you that you will be surprised by God and that your faith in His true character will be strengthened.