Life is full of surprises, some are pleasant, some are unpleasant, some are funny, and some bring tears, some are enjoyable, exciting events and some are dreaded, dismal disasters.
Let me tell you about one of Marlene’s surprises. When Wayne Goodman was my assistant minister at Eastside, he was about to perform his first baptism. He was unsure of how to do it so Marlene agreed to let him practice on her. That is significant because she has a fear of water, instilled by her mother, because her father drowned in the Little Nestucca River 6 weeks before she was born. So we went to the church and set the baptistery up, she and Wayne entered the water and the surprise happened.
Wayne lowered Marlene under the water, and while she was under, he said, “You are being baptized into Jesus Christ, for the forgiveness of sin, in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” I said, “Wayne, usually we say that before we immerse them, and so you need to bring her up now.” She was surprised but not amused. That was one time she wished we were sprinklers!
Life is full of surprises. Paul received a surprise. He was given a glimpse of Heaven and wrote, “Because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, for this reason, to keep me from exalting myself, there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me—to keep me from exalting myself! Concerning this I implored the Lord three times that it might leave me. And He has said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.’ Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ's sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.” 2 Corinthians 12:7-10 (NASB).
I want to share three truths about surprises.
I. WE DON’T GET TO CHOOSE OUR SURPRISES:
A. Paul was hit by a trio of surprises:
1. First, he was surprised by being granted the vision.
2. Second, he was surprised by the thorn in the flesh, which many assume was bad eyesight.
3. Third, he was surprised by the sufficient, empowering grace.
B. But he had chosen none of these surprises. That was not his privilege. Nor is it ours. We do not get to hand pick our surprises even though sometimes we cause them.
1. Your foot slips off the brake and hits the throttle causing your car lurch forward, smashing into the brand-new BMW just in front of you.
a. You are not the only one getting an unchosen surprise.
b. And if the driver gets out of the car with fury on his face, doubled fists and fire in his eyes and heads your way, you might be in for another surprise you didn’t choose.
2. Or we might over indulge like the man in the anti-acid commercial. He is sitting on the edge of his bed looking less lively than road-kill, lamenting, ”I ate the whole thing! I can’t believe I ate the whole thing!” He chose to pig out on pizza but didn’t get to choose the attendant surprise.
C. Marlene and I didn’t choose cancer or Parkinson’s for me or diabetes or shingles for her.
1. BUT SURPRISE: we got them anyway.
2. And if God sees fit for us to be so afflicted, I just pray He will show us how to use these unchosen surprises.
a. How can we witness to others?
b. How can we develop deeper faith?
c. How do we rejoice in midst of a confusing time?
d. How do we glorify Him?
D. What unchosen surprises have you experienced?
1. Were you the victim of a scam?
2. Did someone you trusted betray or fail you?
3. Has poor health made itself at home?
4. Has loss of employment shaken you?
E. Let me illustrate an unchosen surprise. A man was a woodcarver by hobby. He bought a very expensive set of wood carving knives and put them on his table, went to work, and daydreamed about those fabulous tools. Finally it was time to go home to enjoy an hour or so of wood carving.
But unbeknownst to him, his 5 year old son got into the knife set and somehow chipped the cutting edge of one of them. He put it back in the box hoping it would not be noticed.
Dad opened the box, extracted the knives and, naturally, saw that one was damaged. He was sure his wife hadn’t shaved her legs with it so the culprit had to be his son.
He had a couple of choices. He could wave the knife around and shout, “Whooooo Diiiiid this?”
But he opted for the second choice and, holding the knife up to look at it, he said, “Hmmm. Seems that someone had a problem with a project.” His son ran to him, threw his arms around dad’s legs and said, “I did it, Daddy, and I’m really sorry!” He took the boy up in his arms and using this event to gently teach the boy and then forgiving that boy, he was so much like Jesus.
He didn’t choose that miserable surprise, nor do we have that privilege. It doesn’t matter if the surprise is sad or happy, we don’t get to choose. But if our surprises turn out less than delightful:
II. WE DON’T HAVE TO FACE SURPRISES ALONE:
A. God assured Paul of sufficient grace and that was enough for him. He knew God would be with him. And that grace sustained him throughout his entire ministry.
B. We can bank on this: when our surprise turns out to be trouble:
1. “God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble.” Psalm 46:1 (NASB). Not just before the trouble comes, or after the trouble departs, but IN trouble!
2. God doesn’t come to get us out of trouble, He comes to get into our troubles with us.
3. God is not only with us when the sun shines and all is well in the neighborhood, He is with us in every season and condition of life.
4. He doesn’t come to make life easy, He comes to make us strong.
C. It should not surprise us to realize:
1. The power within us is greater than the problem before us.
2. There is no task ahead of us that is as great as the help that is behind us.
3. There is no surprise awaiting us that is as great as the certainty assured us that He will never leave nor forsake us.
D. For the most part, I can say that my troubles are not very many or very big. Blessings far outweigh the blues; good days outnumber the grey days; providence exceeds all the problems. BUT – now and then something comes up that is unsettling and painful and horrible. The poem is so right:
“You may be down, and feel like God has somehow forgotten.
That you are faced with circumstances you can’t get through.
Right now it seems that there’s no way out and you’re going under,
But God’s proven time and time again He’ll take care of you.”
That means:
1. We have someone on Whom we can rely.
2. His promises are a certainty; there is no “date of expiration.”
3. When others let us down, He shows up.
4. When our lives go bust, we can still trust – He is there.
E. An illustration of this comes toward the end of Charles Dickens’ “Tale of Two Cities,” a story of the French revolution. Every day there was a procession through the streets of Paris of prisoners on their way to the guillotine. In one of the processions was Sidney Carton, a brave man who was now giving his life for his friend.
Beside him there was a young girl. She had noticed the gentleness and courage of the man’s face. She said to him “If I may ride with you, will you let me hold your hand? I am not afraid, but I am little and weak, and it will give me more courage.” So they rode together, her hand in his; and when they reached the place of execution there was no fear in her eyes. She looked up into the quiet composed face of her companion, and said “I think you were sent to me by heaven.” And just so, in all the dark valleys of life, our Father, the God of all comfort, in the person of the Holy Spirit, is at our side, saying, “Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10 (NASB)
We don’t get to choose our surprises but we don’t have to face them alone: God is with us! So, surprises? Bring them on! God’s grace makes me more than able. And finally
III. GOD HAS SOME WONDERFUL SURPRISES FOR US IF WE TRUST:
A. Paul was amazed at the gift of God’s grace and wrote,
1. “I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service, even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor. Yet I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief; and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus. It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all. Yet for this reason I found mercy, so that in me as the foremost, Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience as an example for those who would believe in Him for eternal life.” 1 Timothy 1:12-16 (NASB).
2. “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.” 2 Timothy 4:7-8 (NASB).
B. God still gives His surprises.
1. It is still true: “Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.” James 1:17 (NASB).
2. Just as it is written, "Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, and which have not entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love Him." 1 Corinthians 2:9 (NASB).
C. What surprises has God already delivered? What surprises do you long for with anticipation?
1. A world free of drive-by shootings?
2. A world where there is undisturbed peace and harmony?
3. A world where Covid-19 has no power?
4. A world where no one is homeless, outcast, uncared for, and alone?
D. We may have some ideas about out eternal home, but we will be beyond surprised when we see it as it really is.
1. It will make the Hearst Castle look like a chicken coop!
2. It will make the Taj Mahal look like an out house!
3. It will make Graceland look like a tool shed.
4. We will be amazed, awestricken and stunned.
E. This all brings to mind Ryan, a 12 year old boy who was in the Hospital ICU in a coma from a severe brain bleed. For days his parents stood by his bed praying. Suddenly he woke and said to them, “What are you doing here?” Then looking upward, he got a glimpse of those unseen, unheard of, unimagined things God has prepared. He said, “Oh! WOW!” and slipped quietly to heaven. What a glorious surprise awaited him when the Lord called him home.
We may have no idea what our life will entail but we have the assurance that whatever crisis we face, grief we bear or struggle we encounter, it will not hinder us from receiving God’s grace. When we turn our eyes upwards, we are reminded that we are not alone.
May we find a sense of peace, hope and security in whatever circumstances we encounter because for this we have mazing grace.
Life is full of surprises, the greatest of which is Amazing Grace, freely offered, abundant and sufficient for our needs and grace that gives us Heaven. But that shouldn’t surprise us since the Bible tells us so.
PRAY / INVITE
