Everyone Loves A Surprise

I stopped at the produce stand this weekend to get some fresh fruits and vegetables. After picking up several yummy items, I decided to get a watermelon. My kids love watermelon in the summer, and sometimes I think I could eat a whole one by myself! But that might cause a serious riot, so I normally try to share. ;)

So I took the watermelon home and pulled out a big knife. I carefully sliced it open, anxiously awaiting the fresh sweet aroma to burst out out of its red center. The two sides fell apart, and I was shocked at what I saw. I gasped aloud, and my mom yelled over from the living room to see what was wrong. This watermelon was not read, but was bright yellow inside!

A yellow watermelon?? At first I thought it must have looked ripe on the outside, but been unripe on the inside. Then I wondered if some crazy scientist had mixed up the seeds between a watermelon and a pineapple. But I took a chance, and tasted it. It tasted exactly like a bright red juicy watermelon!

For those of you who knew yellow watermelons existed, you probably think I am behind the times. But I honestly have never even heard of a yellow watermelon, much less seen one up close and personal! The sign on the watermelon stand didnt say anything about yellow watermelons, so I thought I was purchasing a regular ol' red watermelon. As a result, I was very surpised, but it was a good surprise.

It took a little prodding and convincing, but finally everyone agreed to taste the yellow watermelon, and then, everyone wanted more. It was delicious! In fact, if I closed my eyes, I couldnt even tell the difference!

I thought this was a prime example of exactly how God operates in our lives. (I know, I know... it is amazing how I can turn a little watermelon eating into a biblical thought isnt it? My kids always poke fun at me about that. Smiles.)

But God truly does deal in surprises. We seek out to get a certain thing, and we think we are getting what we wanted, and then God surprises us with something even better than we imagined! Something more exciting, fun and fulfilling than we thought was possible!

Obedience to His call on our life is kind of like this, dont you think? We want to obey God, but we are afraid to try to something new. We want to keep going down the same old path out of habit or comfort, but when we begin to lean on God, He throws in a little surprise for us. When we finally trust Him fully and give into His plan for our life, the outcome is so much better than what we thought we would get!

Submitting to God’s will often requires costs or sacrifices, but if we truly trust Him, we can believe in our hearts that He will have something far better for us than we ever expected, or can even imagine. I dont know about you, but I am axiously awaiting for God to throw me a few surprises!

Is there anything that God has surprised you with lately?

Proverbs 3:5 Trust God from the bottom of your heart; don't try to figure out everything on your own. Listen for God's voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he's the one who will keep you on track. Don't assume that you know it all. Run to God! Run from evil! Your body will glow with health, your very bones will vibrate with life! Honor God with everything you own; give him the first and the best. Your barns will burst, your wine vats will brim over. But don't, dear friend, resent God's discipline; don't sulk under his loving correction. It's the child he loves that God corrects; a father's delight is behind all this. (The Message)

Matthew 19:26 Jesus looked hard at them and said, "No chance at all if you think you can pull it off yourself. Every chance in the world if you trust God to do it."