Hello, all. Life is full of surprises. Am I right? Yes, that’s a snake stuck in my front door. Half in, half out. Fortunately, non of our pets found the business end and got hurt. It was quite a surprise to find on the way out the door for breakfast. I am horrible at identifying snakes, but I think this is an immature Cottonmouth.

Do any of you have predictable weeks that are free from surprises? If so, I feel sad for you AND I am envious.

Sad, because surprises make life interesting. True, some surprises, like a tree on top of your car after a storm, are icky, bad, aweful surprises. But some surprises are lovely, like confirmation of a hoped-for pregnancy. Or, for the guys, winning a low bid on an estate auction bass boat.

Envious, because some weeks there are just too many surprises. Am I right? I can see you nodding your heads in agreement. You just got your car back from brake repairs and now the alternator gives out, followed by the power steering pump, followed by a blown-out tire, followed by… you tracking with me?

So, I’m reminded of a Bible story. In Matthew chapter 6, Jesus talks about anxiety. Admit it, bad surprises produce anxiety. He just finished talking about laying up treasures in heaven rather than seeking treasures on earth. Then He said, “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious… Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?”

Jesus goes right to the basics of life, food, and clothing. Then he gives examples of little things on earth that are cared for by God: the birds of the air and the lilies of the field. The birds don’t grow their own food. They don’t have barns built for them to gather in to be fed. Yet God provides food for them.

The flowers of the field are beautiful to behold. They don’t make clothing for themselves, yet, “I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.”

Jesus emphatically states that we humans are exceedingly more important to God than the birds and the flowers. Therefore, if God supplies food and clothing to nature, we should trust Him to provide us with our food and clothing.

Jesus did not say, trust is easy. But he did say it is powerful. Do you have any stories of how God provided for you? Were you able to trust Him along the way? I would love to hear from you.

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Thanks!