What Is Behind Me?

I turned my head expecting to see a rabbit…

Matthew 28:11-20

Reference: v.17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. (TNIV Bible)

Explore: Most days I go for a jog along the same route. The toughest part of this exercise is a steep hill that goes for about 500 metres. The best part of this exercise is that the hill is filled with wild animals and has a great view of the Melbourne CBD.

On a regular jog, I will see kangaroos, rabbits, lots of birds and the occasional fox. While we are polite and like to keep our distance from each other, it is nice to feel like I’m ‘out in the wild’ even just for a few minutes.

The other day I had finally made it to the top of this steep hill. I had taken a moment to catch my breath and was just starting my descent when I heard a noise behind me. I turned my head expecting to see a rabbit (as this is the most common animal observed on the hill) only to discover the thing that had made the noise was as tall as I was!

My next thought was it must be a kangaroo, and for a split second my heart raced even faster as I realised how close it was to me.  However, another second later my brain finally registered what my eyes were really seeing… it was just another jogger.

I laughed to myself at the process my mind had gone through. It just goes to show how rare it was for me to see other people exercising up this hill when my mind assumed the noise behind me was either a rabbit or a kangaroo rather than a human!

Application: Our expectations can have a big influence on our thoughts. I had expected to see some sort of wild animal on my jog and so it took my mind a little while to register what was really before me.

When the disciples met together after Jesus’ crucifixion the last person they expected to see before them was Jesus himself. Even when He stood in their presence it says that some ‘still doubted’.

They had seen or heard what had happened and it seemed unrealistic to expect that Jesus would rise from the dead and be standing before them. I guess that is one of the great but perplexing things about Jesus, He tends to go beyond our expectations.

Luckily for us He is truly gracious towards those of us who take a little while to get our heads around who He is and how He is moving. We don’t always understand, and it’s not always within our expectation, however, Jesus will always be there to support what is best for us and for His kingdom.

Prayer: Lord, I am often quick to place you in a box so that I can understand everything about You. May I not be so quick to limit the possibilities you have in store for me. Amen.

When has God exceeded your expectations?

disciples, expectations, Jesus, Matthew