Tip of My Iceberg

“You’ve gotta come see this.”

John was yelling at me from the family room. Tiff and Ramsay had returned with Brooklyn.

Just shy of a month, Brookie was skootching across the ottoman.

Unbelievable.

I hear that a lot. “Come and see this!” “You won’t believe this.” “I had no idea.”

Something unexpected. Not anticipated. Often really positive. A wonderful surprise.

Like Brooklyn skootching. Or her first non-gas related intentional smile.

Those are the sweet times that bring grins. And appreciation.

There are those other surprises. Those times you’d rather not see happen.

Like the time Isley decided to draw on the walls and door in our upstairs bedroom.

With permanent marker.

John’s “You’ve gotta come see this” wasn’t spoken with a chuckle. More like a groan.

Or the time I was driving my kids to the soccer field. Unfamiliar with the area, I was trucking along at well over the limit when I stopped for gas.

And found I was trucking fast in the wrong direction. Almost 100 miles from where I needed to be.

I had no idea.

Life is full of surprises. Good and not so good. Times when you want to grin. Other times when only a grimace will do.

You can bet the bank on the kind most people prefer.

Then there are those who don’t like surprises at all. Good or bad. They don’t want to be caught unawares. Unprepared for how to respond. Grins and grimaces both make them uncomfortable.

No matter where we fall on the spectrum of surprise enjoyment, these revelations will always illicit some type of response.

I’ve never hidden my responses well. Folks know when I’m pleasantly surprised or purely annoyed.

Back in Jesus’ time, when He was getting His ministry off the ground, He was challenging men to join Him in what He was going to do.

One man in particular, Nathanael, heard Jesus was from Nazareth. His response was, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?”

He wasn’t kidding. Nazareth was one of those backward villages that had never had anything spectacular happen there or come from there. Many of its people were illiterate. Nothing remarkable about the place.

To hear from his friend, Philip, that the Messiah was from Nazareth made no sense to Nathanael. His expectation, like so  many others, was that this Messiah would be a strong leader to free them from bondage. Someone from some place important. Like D.C. Or Rome.

Or at least, Jerusalem.

Philip’s response?

“You’ve just gotta come and see Him.”

Which he did. And discovered he had no idea of what he’d been talking about.

When folks today think of Jesus, many think in terms of a caricature of Him. Or evaluate Him on the basis of His followers.

Neither of which do Him justice.

I can tell you how walking with Him is the best thing that ever happened to me. How living in His hope is better than anything else I could possibly imagine.

But don’t take it from me.

You just gotta come be with Him. Let Him surprise you.

In a really great way.