Nothing New

Since last year, my husband and I have had the privilege of teaching an adult Sunday School class (I prefer the term Small Group, but hey, ya know…we are Baptists!) at our church. Full of energetic, gifted and God-seeking individuals, our class has always been about real issues…real relationships…and our very REAL God. From the very start, God gave my husband the word THRIVE to describe our group, and “grow well and do well” we have! In addition to our physical growth of nearly 150 individuals, we have seen marked spiritual growth, as well. Our class is an action class…has true servant’s hearts…and loves to be challenged to go to new levels in their walk with God. My husband and I are truly inspired and honored to get to be a part of what God is doing in Room 327 at Hickory Grove North week after week!

This past Sunday, our class gave us a huge surprise. They blessed us both verbally and physically, sharing many kind words and a very generous monetary gift. We were humbled, touched, motivated, and SURPRISED by this one-year class celebration! Even though we knew the anniversary date was on Sunday, we truly did not think the class had anything up their sleeve! They kept the secret very well, and up until the moment one of the guys came up and whispered something in my husband’s ear as he began to teach, we had no clue as to what they were doing.

You have to understand -- this is saying a lot coming from the girl who shakes her Christmas presents ahead of time and knows what they are before I open them…usually has her radar up and going…and has a perfect record (up until last Sunday) of figuring out a surprise ahead of time. It’s hard to catch me off guard. But boy, this time, they did!

You would have think that I would have noticed something was up when I walked in and saw two of our women in leadership with aprons on, standing over hot griddles making blueberry pancakes. I could have clued in when another woman brought in hand-dipped chocolate covered strawberries and other yummy concoctions. My radar should have been going off when I felt the excitement buzzing around the room, watching smiling, happy people giving hugs and welcoming new faces. I should have known that something was coming…something was brewing…something was unique and different about the day. But I didn’t. I didn’t…because…it wasn’t.

Anything different or unique, that is.

There was nothing unique or special that stood out in my mind that morning when I walked into a room where everyone was in on the secret except for my husband and me. As far as I was concerned, it was just an ordinary Sunday with no real significance other than the obvious of being another great day to worship God together!

You see, the people who meet in Room 327 every week are servers. They are givers. They are doers. They are God-lovers. And to see them serving and giving and doing and loving was of no surprise to me when I saw them doing just that last Sunday. Their conduct didn’t give away the surprise of what was to come, because their conduct was consistent with what their conduct ALWAYS is. They did not do anything different on this day to tip my husband or myself off to what was going on. In our mind, they were just being themselves.

So as I was reflecting on the day this past week, in addition to being overwhelmed by the kindness and generosity of my dear friends, I was also convicted…and motivated, all at the same time by these thoughts:

…What if I were to live my life in such a way that people weren’t surprised when I was kind?

…What if I were to live my life in such a way that people weren’t at all shocked when I was generous?

…What if I were to live my life in such a way that people could easily believe that I was spirit-led, spirit-filled, and spirit-controlled? What if they weren’t thrown off when I was giving and loving and cared for them?

…What if I were to live my life in such a way that people weren’t surprised when I acted like Christ?

I don’t want to live my life like an employee that only cleans up her act when the boss is dropping by the office and she needs to impress him or her. I don’t want it to be out of character for me to help someone out in need, take time for someone who is hurting, or live a Christ-centered life. I don’t want anyone to see anything different in me if I am on the street, or at a ballgame, or in a chair in church. I want to be like my friends in our class who consistently exude such spiritual fruit that one Sunday morning is no different than any other…no matter what is on the agenda.

It reminds me of the verse written by Paul to the church in Corinth in II Corinthians 3:3 – “Clearly, you are a letter from Christ showing the result of our ministry among you. This “letter” is written not with pen and ink, but with the Spirit of the living God. It is carved not on tablets of stone, but on human hearts.”

Tonight I say “thank you” to our class…not only for the kindness they showed to us last Sunday, but also for the example of servant hood they constantly inspire both my husband and me with on a regular basis. Thanks for teaching us how to love Jesus more by everyday ACTION. Thanks for writing on our hearts and the hearts of those you come in contact with. May all of us strive to live our lives in such a way that we never “surprise” anyone.

Lisa

P.S. Please pray for me as I am going to be on our awesome local Christian radio station, New Life 91.9, this Friday, December 7th, from 9:00am-10:30! Leslie Nease (my friend from Survivor that I blogged about a while back) and I will be chatting about my books, life, and various other topics of interest. Pray that I will not put my very chatty foot in my mouth...will speak fluently and communicate the message well...and most of all, will write on people's hearts by God's spirit using me as His mouthpiece! It'll be a great time to test out what this blog is all about! :)