The One With Surprise Me, God

Current Mood: Trepidatious

I learned something new today. No, I suppose that is not true. It would be more accurate to say that I saw in reality something that I had always taken for granted. In chapel on Monday, a gentleman by the name of Terry Esau was invited to speak about his book Surprise Me, God. However, his planned speech went through the shredder the day before...it proved to be an interesting chapel.

Terry Esau has a daughter at Baylor, which is why he was available to speak. He came down on Saturday to spend the weekend with her and go with her to church on Sunday before speaking on Monday.



His daughter attends University Baptist Church.

As you can imagine, the humorous speech he had written for our inattentive ears no longer seemed appropriate. Instead, he spoke about the personal experiment upo0n which he based his book. Surprise Me, God is basically a journal telling of Terry's 30 day experiment with God. He woke up one morning and prayed that God would surprise him. It seems like such a funny thing to do, but he began to tell stories of how God impacted his life through people he met over the next month and through events that transpired. It was, apparently, intriguing enough to warrant a whole book.

So, this morning, I decided to try the experiment. I figured, "why not?" I have nothing to lose and I know that I could always use a tune-up in the spiritual walk department. I never doubted that God could do it. I mean, I know deep inside that he is active and moving, but sometimes the God of the Bible who appeared in towering flames or parted an entire sea or even just kept dew from forming on a fleece seems so...distant. Those things don't happen anymore. I think we are lulled into thinking that God is there when we want him to be, but we keep Him separated from our lives. I have "God-land" in my head where we have our daily conversations, but that's where it ends.

Anyway, I was excited at the prospect of God surprising me this morning...but didn't really think beyond that. But tonight, things changed. God doesn't have to work in still, small whisperings. Many times he does. Many times, a suggestion that only the tiniest portion of our mind can hear is exactly what we need. But not always. I think I limited God. Not that God could be limited, but I think that because I never expected Him to work something tangible - something more than a vapor in my ear - he never did. I don't think there is much else in this world more shocking than to see God clearly. It's like coming home, unlocking the front door that you lock compulsively to protect your home from anything outside, and finding a note sitting on your desk that says, "I can find you. You cannot keep me away. I am here and I am working."

And now, I am nervous. In some moments, downright scared. This is day 1. I have 29 days to go. How real will God be at the end?