The set-up

The other day, over lunch, I was explaining to a friend about an unusual experience with a someone that I unexpectedly encountered. He fixed his eyes on me and started telling me something out of the blue as if he had been looking for someone like me. I was puzzled, and uncomfortable, thinking ‘What the deal?” I told him the details of what seemed an annoying and random meeting , when he said, “Exactly!” His response caught me off guard. Exactly?? He, too, like me, had a similar, perplexing experience that he could not escape quickly enough. As I listened “I never expected another to have the same kind of off-the-wall encounter. It made me consider that there might be a divine hand involved. I thought maybe the interaction was not random, but…, well, divinely strategic?

To explain, in case you have had one of these, we both felt “cornered” by someone unexpectedly. And, this has happened in surprising spots to el Guapo over the years. Someone catching me unawares in a public gathering, telling me with insistence their thoughts on something troubling them—without me asking. Someone using me as a listening board. And like a board, I just stand there perplexed, not knowing how to respond,. In hindsight, I call it, “The set-up.” But for a much need, significant reason.

If there is such a thing as a “set-up” for me and you, that implies someone else doing it to me, or to us.. That Person would know a lot about us, and have greater vision for our lives than we do. So when we feel relationally targeted, Is it just a random, hyper-focused individual looking for a likely listener? Am I the lucky one? Or am I a divine target? Are you at times a divine target? Methinks, to use Shakespeare, the Father is so much closer and brilliant than we imagine.

What doe divine intervention look like?

Divine intervention can be someone surprising usunexpectedly with something we: Do. Not. Want. to hear or think about. (If we are not careful, we can push it/them aside and dismiss the interruption as annoying—return back to normal)

In my walk with Jesus, based upon my personal preferences, I have learned that I shy away from things I don’t like. And, seriously, there are times that I realize I may be trying to avoid certain relationships I see in my periphery, that seem unpleasant. I think you know what I am talking about. We favor those who “get us.” Appreciate us So we easily pick and choose those with whom we prefer to connect. Safe people.

But, what if the Father has a much bigger vision for each of us, than we do for ourselves? To reach us, to grow us, and get us to go outside our comfort zones? What if He is a very personal BIG GOD zooming into us in a surprising and mysterious way? Theoretically, what if were not intentional or strategic enough to seek Him, get close? What if we routinely stay with like-minded people because they are safe? How does the Father get reluctant Me out of my comfort zon?. Send someone in to disrupt me. Yep, disrupt. He the Father in a relational universe.

Why me? Answer: When stressed, we are to look in the right direction— calling out to the Father for help! He expects us to.

How does the Father intervene relationally with me/you? Experience is a good teacher: He may send the difficult ones who for some, unexpected reason, find their way to you and me. Bringing conflict. Just when we thought we were safe and secure. And they see me (or you). Without asking questions, they tell us their point of view. Which we hate. Provoking us. When these close encounters of an unexpected kind occur, I feel overwhelmed by the one making emphatic points “at” me (not “with” me). I feel trapped. El Guapo el kabonged.

Is “the set-up” the Father’s way to disrupt our predictable lives? To indirectly remind us our lives are not our own, we are not in control, our vision is too small. And, possibly, we have left Him out…again?. He disrupts to awaken us our of our short-sightedness and our routines.

In living life with a BIG GOD who is always near, yes, there is a plan much greater at work in my/our lives than what we expect—or assume. He sends an unexpected relational brush, that turns into an ambush, as it were, that may chide us. Annoy us. Grate against what I/we want. Revealing our impatience, lack of grace, or kindness, or compassion. Self desires to be in control. Another person locking on to us intently, and not easily letting us go is unwanted. El Guapo el trapped.

Conversations in our head rarely resolve our problems

With these periodic “ambushes,” my thoughts return to the Lord, and reflect, “Could this be Your doing to create some kind of insight or self-discovery for me/us?” Because I fully feel Self wiggling for air when cornered. My immediate reality has simply shrunk to this unwanted relational dynamic that looms in front of ME—or now in conversation inside of my head. Yikes. Who would do that to me? While threatened Self scrambles to quickly disappear, I sense “Why am I freaking out?”. Why am I thinking of how to escape this tense conflict? I am very slow to think, “Lord, what are you doing with me in this encounter?”

How does the Lord reach us in our comfort zones?

Since He is brilliant in all His ways, what I am sharing is just one observation.. Therefore, let me lay out some foundational pieces that we may overlook—which are relevant to our spiritual realites:

“Truly You are a God who likes to hide Himself” Is, 46;15 (God hides Himself from us? But is engaged in every part of creation).

“Were He (GOD) to pass by me, I would not see Him; were He to move past me, I would not perceive Him.” Job 9:11 (for the righteous Job, God is very close, but he still has no inkling where—and how close).

Yes, Isaiah and Job are stating the obvious. We do not “see” any of the Trinity. But, be very careful here. Else we may blunder with our tiny, puny, finite, trusted logic and perception: I/we cannot see God; that means He cannot see me.

Except He’s GOD.

(He’s the GOD of the Universe. He sees and knows everything!)

Put another way, the supernatural world is hidden from us, but actually, and mysteriously, envelopes us as we nonchalantly come and go through our daily routines and relationships.

That is the foundational message of Jesus, and the Scriptures for fallen man.

Even though we may not give conscious thought to GOD’s presence,

We. Are. Seen. And Known.

A few more foundational Scriptural nuggets before we make a turn to our personal circumstances where we get annoyed ambushed.

“We know that we are of God, and that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.” 1 John 5:19 Huh? The whole world is in the dark? If they don’t have the Light of Christ in them, how will they understand our values and our perspective? Er, they probably will not get what you stand for.

“… one God and Father of all Who is over all and through all and in all.” Ephesians 4;6 Exactly where is God? ‘of”…’over’…’through…and in all.” GOD envelopes us—according to the Word.

AND THE BEST ONE:

“…and He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth,…

…having determined their appointed times (Father GOD determined when we would live on planet earth)

and the boundaries of their habitation (and where-in terms of location, our geographic place of birth, family, etc.),

that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; for in Him we live and move and have our being…” (God delights in those who seek Him) Acts 17:26-28

Team, think about it. Seriously.:

The Father desires for us to Look. For. Him. In. Our. Daily. Circumstances. That’s His Plan.

These Scriptures about the invisible realm of God are sprinkled throughout both the Old and New Testament. The truth of His omnipresence were embedded in Jewish consciousness. The Word is the substance, the glue, to let us know that our lives are now enbeded in and with Christ. If we miss this, we miss much of the power and joy of the Good News.

Remember, as we move about effortlessly, going about our daily business, we don’t see the Father at work. We assume all we see is all there is. We need reminders that we are living and moving in the real, purposeful GOD story. His hand is at work to awaken us, to stir us, to provoke us into His reality. Beyond our tiny, visible space in life. For His sons and daughters, He brings things and people into our lives that seem unwanted and troublesome (tension, conflict, stress, hardship—and often this does not resolve quickly). Yes, the Father jolts us at times to awaken us by things that seem overwhelming and stressful. What do we then do? We must cry out, pray, turn to Him for saving grace. That’s the plan. His plan for the ages. Open ourselves up to Him at every turn.

“Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done,

On earth as it is in Heaven” (where we live with Him).

Our individual Faith in Chirst cannot ever be seen in this realm. It can only be seen from the unseen, eternal realm—(our family and friends cannot see Jesus in us, abiding). At best, they can only see the changes and the fruit of knowing Him (sometimes).

New Creations.

Individually. We. Are. Known. And. Seen.

Actually, with an intentional Father, He strategically shapes us through others.