Divine Disruptions

I am sitting in my living room, unshaven and drinking a good cup of coffee, watching the snow blowing sideways outside my window. The fireplace is roaring and I'm listening to my favorite Christmas CD while my dog lays at my feet looking at me like I'm important. Yet, in this serene setting, I am feeling frustrated. The wrong emotion for this peaceful environment.

The reason for the frustration? I have to make a decision in a few hours...should we cancel services tomorrow? My decision is affected by the hopes and plans that I had for our times of gathering this month. We planned and prepared for a great month of focused worship, teaching and sacrificial/missional giving.

When you have a church our size, you don't make plans flying by the seat of your pants. When so many people need communication, coordination and preparation, you have to be way out in front in your planning. For us, Christmas gets pretty well planned out by early fall with some tweaking along the way to Dec. We pray, brainstorm, decide and execute the plan.

We thought our Christmas plan was a good one, but more than that, we thought it was a divinely inspired one. We still do. However, God had another part of the plan in mind that He chose not to reveal to us earlier -- a weather disruption.

What are our options when our plans are disrupted? Whenever we have a disruption, I find encouragement from one of my life verses found in Proverbs 16:9

"In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps."

The Lord directs our steps. We make plans prayerfully and then walk them out daily as the Lord leads. Today, I'm choosing to settle down and relax, to enjoy this divine interuption to my plans of how I thought things would go and should go. God knew in advance that two of our Sunday services this month would get disrupted. He knew that our normal financial life as a church would get disrupted. He knew that our well laid plans of school, work, recreation etc. would get disrupted.

How ironic that I would be whining about weather dis-ruptions at Christmas when the nativity set in my living room reminds me that the story of Christmas is about disruption.

Has anyone experienced more disruption than Mary and Joseph? Being a virgin who is suddenly expecting a child is a disruption. Being engaged to someone you love who 'breaks' this bizarre news of divine conception to you is a disruption. Having to flee to a foriegn country for a few years because a crazed political ruler is killing infant boys in your town is a disruption. The Shepherds were disrupted, the Magi were disrupted, the Heavens were disrupted...normal plans and routines disrupted because God is doing something great.

If God is allowing this disruption, then I need to remember that in times of disruption:

1. God gets our attention -- When our plans are disrupted we usually have to slow down and even stop. We have to look and listen a little more carefully. Maybe we are heading to the right destination but taking the wrong road to get there? What needs adjusting, what needs to be reprioritized in my life?

2. God is usually doing something bigger than I know. I tend to view things through the lens of my own experience or 'how is this affecting me?' The Bible is filled with stories like Joseph, Abraham, Paul etc. who were disrupted so that salvation could be brought to families and nations. 'God, what are you doing and how can I fit in with your plan?'

3. God is sovereign. You and I run the risk of thinking that God is here to do our bidding. He is not our servant, we are His. Mary said 'be it unto me as you have said.' In the end 'God is God' and I align and adjust to His ways and thoughts. My sovereign God can easily be 'my own understanding' if I am not careful.

So, as I type this blog post, I'm focusing more on the nativity and I hope you will do the same as we rest in Him and trust in Him with all of our hearts.
After all, His Word tells us that "if you will trust in the Lord with all of your hearts and lean not to your own understanding, acknowledge Him in all your ways and HE WILL direct your paths."