by Pastor Douglas Brauner

A Surprise around the Corner

You can listen to today’s devotion by clicking on this SoundCloud link.

I hadn’t made the trek to Jones Park on Pikes Peak for a number of years. The aspen in Jones Park, dressed in fall colors, are spectacular at their peak. I had every reason to believe that the trees would put me in sensory overload.

Nearing Jones Park on the Seven Bridges Trail, I knew that I was in for a let down. Not only were the trees past their prime, but the leaves had fallen off the trees and had already turned black on the forest floor. Yet, there was something beautiful about these trees even without the leaves. Their white bark, their size, their straight and crooked trunks all added to their beauty.

It wasn’t what I expected but it was amazing all the same.

“For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.”
Romans 8:18 English Standard Version

Disappointment is one form of suffering that we endure this side of eternity. Life doesn’t always turn out the way that we expect. We graduate from college with high hopes that we will be able to use our degree to find the job that we’ve dreamed of only to find ourselves back behind the same coffee shop counter where we worked before we left for college.

Our marriage doesn’t turn out as we’d hoped. Our children don’t live up to our dreams for them. Our health prevents us from enjoying retirement.

Disappointment is real and it hurts.

God has a surprise around the corner for those who trust in his Son. We’re not there yet, but it is coming soon. Soon we will experience the glory that will be ours when Jesus returns. In that day, our disappointment will disappear and we will be surprised beyond our imagination. Even today, we experience touches of God’s mercy that surprise us and remind us that an even a greater surprise is around the corner.

Copyright Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado