Expect the Unexpected
December 3, 2023 – Laura House
When Nathan was ten years old, we moved to a farmhouse in the Indiana countryside. After Thanksgiving, we prepared for our first Christmas on the farm with our first “real” Christmas tree. No more of the artificial ones for our family! With great excitement, we headed to a local tree farm to choose one for ourselves. Of course, Nathan wanted to be the one to chop it down, which was fine with the rest of us.
After an hour of inspecting dozens of trees in the chilly weather, we found the ‘perfect’ one, and Nathan got down on the ground to use the handsaw on the trunk. We tied the beautiful pine to the top of our minivan, and headed home. It had been a magical, memorable, cold adventure, complete with photo ops and hot chocolate.
Since it was getting late, we decided to only put the lights on the tree and decorate it the next morning. But alas, that wasn’t to be! All of us,...every single one of us… woke up wheezing and had welts on our arms where we had touched the tree. Resigning ourselves to the fact that we apparently were allergic to pine, we gave the beautiful tree to a newly married seminary student who was thrilled.
Can you think of times when you were completely surprised by something? Are there things in your life that were totally unexpected?
For us, Nathan’s death was one of those; totally unexpected. Never in our wildest imaginations would we have thought that one of our children would go to Heaven ahead of us, leaving us here to walk the difficult road of grief.
But now? Rarely does something take me by surprise. I have learned to expect the unexpected; to be prepared that this earthly life is full of things that happen that I would never have thought possible. I never know what the next day might bring…something joyful or full of sorrow.
But this I do know…
Nothing ever takes the Lord by surprise. He knows everything that will happen, every hurt and pain; and He cares. If we put our trust in Him, we will find strength to endure, experience joy in the journey, and discover peace that passes human understanding.
We can trust that God is good, and He loves us, and our children, more than we can fathom.
We can trust that God knows our hurts, sufferings, and dashed hopes and dreams, and He grieves with us.
We can trust that God will comfort us in our afflictions. He will never leave us. He will carry us through.
We can trust that God will use our suffering to draw us nearer to Him; to mold and shape us.
We can trust that this earthly life is but a vapor that will pass away, but we will spend eternity with Him and with our loved ones who have gone on before us. Our citizenship is in Heaven.
T.R.U.S.T. is sometimes one of the hardest words in the English language for me, but also one of the most beautiful, comforting, and secure.
We can trust Him. We can rest in Him. We can rediscover joy, purpose, and peace.
Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. — Isaiah 41:10
Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.— Isaiah 43:1-2
I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world. — John 16:33
The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. Those who know your name trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you. — Psalm 9:9-10
