Not Surprised!

Here in Costa Rica we have our family in our fourth week of isolation. As I have been ministering at the hospital, we were on it immediately. Each day I get up and put on real clothes and change out of my pajamas. Well I put on my running clothes even though I don’t run until the evening, but I just can’t stay in my PJs all day. Our family has been keeping ourselves busy around the house with creative activities and lots of movies. And I listen to a lot of music.

It seems that if I slow down and my mind starts to drift to the situation at hand, I get overwhelmed. Just being honest. When I start feeling this way, I have realized I need to take a moment and take a deep breath and refocus my attention. I need to take my attention away from what is out of my control and what I can’t do and put it back on the One who is in control. When I do this I sense this quiet whisper that says,…

I am not surprised….

One of the most comforting things to me right now is focusing on the character of God.

One of my favorite classes back in college was called Systematic Theology with Dr. Walter Johnson.

Who remembers this book? Best book!

I can’t tell you how many times God has used what I learned about Him in this class to comfort me during hard times in my life. And He continues to do so by whispering to me….

I am not surprised….

And not only do any of our current circumstances surprise God, but they also do not change anything about who He is. In that class back in college we saw Biblically, systematically that God doesn’t change. He’s the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. He is still sovereign. He is still all powerful. He is still ever present, all the time. And He is still working ALL things out for our good.

This comforts me. Romans 8:28 might seem cliche… perhaps it is quoted to the point that it doesn’t impact us anymore. But that doesn’t negate its truth.

My daughter the other night asked for a particular picture I had taken of her playing volleyball. You see, my daughter loves volleyball. It is her life. She has dreams of playing in college and she trains year round and has been training in our house during all of this by creating a “gym” in our garage and hitting outside in the street with her little sister. A couple of hours after I sent her the picture I got on Instagram to see that she had posted it….

Her caption is everything….
Psalm 18:32 It is God who arms me with strength and keeps my way secure!

I read her caption and it brought me to tears. She gets it. My husband and I don’t keep her way secure. She doesn’t keep her way secure. God keeps her way secure and He is arming her with strength.

So dear friends, my encouragement to you and to myself is to rest in Him. Let us remember who God is and rest in His care and peace…. His sovereign control and power. He is working all of this out and is working in it. He will not leave us dangling and grasping for help.

Because friends,

God is not surprised….