SURPRISE!

Out of the fullness of his grace he has blessed us all, giving us one blessing after another. (John 1:16)

I just love it when surprises show up in my day!  The best part of trying really hard to be a good disciple is the way God sends his grace in tiny little packages and I notice them.  I can be pretty thick headed (not sure if that’s a gift from my Irish father or my German mother?) but lately he’s been really good at helping me recognize the great little surprises of life as his gifts.  What I’ve discovered is that the more I notice them and follow them with gratitude to him; the more little graces he sprinkles throughout my day!  He’s so good to me!

Yesterday I drove to downtown Detroit to do a training at Sacred Heart Seminary.  The building is incredibly beautiful but it is nestled in a part of Detroit that isn’t quite so beautiful.  I was excited to be invited to the Archdiocese of Detroit again because the people there are SOOO amazing and in love with the Lord, but the travel there makes me a little stressed.  I occasionally have to slow down on my morning commute for a tractor or possibly a school bus, but traffic slowdowns mean something TOTALLY different in Detroit.  When 6 lanes of traffic became a parking lot and I was totally unfamiliar with the route, I decided I had 2 choices.  First, I could become a giant stress ball sitting  in my Chevy Traverse or second, I could say loudly and repeatedly, Jesus I trust in you…Jesus build my patience….Father, if you could part the Red Sea you can get me through this traffic to the place I need to be;  AND…he did!  The fist surprise of the day was the big truck that let me scoot over into the lane I needed so I didn’t miss my exit and it came with a giant smile and a happy wave from the driver.  

After I finished in Detroit I had an hour drive to meet my 6th graders at camp.  I was sad to miss the first few hours of camp but the little surprise in that; I didn’t have to ride the bus!  The best surprise of the day happened when I arrived at camp and heard little voices yelling hello to me and the giant wet hug I got from the camper who fell in the lake while canoeing was awesome!  I fell asleep last night thinking God had graced me huge and I thought that was enough.  Then today began and the surprises just keep coming!

My day began with an incredible surprise…two beautiful ladies I don’t even know made the most delicious coffee I think I’ve ever had and I drank my first cup of the day in a rocking chair, on a giant porch, looking at a lake while saying my morning prayers!  Nobody ever makes my first cup of coffee of the day…I didn’t realize how such a simple thing could make me so delighted and I was so grateful!  I didn’t think I’d be able to post a blog today but…the lodge has wifi and I’m typing with a view of a beautiful lake.  God is really outdoing himself and I have to wonder…is he really working harder this week or am i just seeing things more clearly because my heart is more open and grateful?  

I’m in a beautiful place the next two days with the students I love, some great parents who happily volunteered to come along and we are surrounded by Camp Ohiyesa staff who are beaming with joy and are using their God given gifts and talents to make this a fabulous experience and my heart is just so full!  Thank you God for your grace…now please help me remember to notice it even when the surrounding aren’t so pretty and the people aren’t so lovely and the coffee isn’t so tasty.  Help me remember that your grace comes to us in happy times but it also abounds in times that are tricky. Help me remember you will always give one blessings after another!
A Seed To Plant:  Your mission today is two fold…look for his surprises and then tell him thank you.  The more you repeat the process…the more he will send his grace!​

Blessings on your day!