Lord Surprise Me

Hey, y’all! It has been quite a while since I have posted anything on here. For the past month, I have been working at a summer camp in Yosemite, which has kept me quite busy! It is something that is very outside of my comfort zone, and something I never thought I would do. I grew up going to camp each summer, and so the camp has a big piece of my heart and place in my testimony. However, I always would tell myself that I would never work at a camp because it didn’t suit my personality or energy level. I figured I wasn’t outgoing in the same ways, and that I honestly wouldn’t enjoy doing that for a whole summer. So I said no to ever working at a camp.

This past semester held some big life shifts for me, accompanied by many questions. The semester held the most amount of unknowns than any other time in my life. What does God want for me in relationships? What should I do about housing situations? What should I do this summer? Where should I live this summer… and the list went on. I just found myself completely confused about what to do about so many things. I began to pray “Lord surprise me,” which felt like a bold prayer but also exciting to see how the Lord would answer that prayer.

As I prayed for the Lord to surprise me on where He wanted me to spend my summer, I honestly received no answer for a while. One morning at Bible study I felt the Lord tell me, “Lindsay you need to pour into younger girls this summer and it’s going to be at camp” (there was definitely a moment where I was like really God don’t you know I said no to working at camp). I typically hear from the Lord through repetition and other people so at that moment even though I felt like it was the Lord speaking to me, I still questioned if it was just my own thoughts. That night I went on the webpage of the camp I grew up going to, but I still didn’t feel l like I was supposed to work there. Two days later my dad came up to visit me at school and randomly brought up that he thought I should work at this summer camp he and my mom had worked at in college. At that moment I knew that was the Lord confirming what He had spoken to me that morning at Bible study.

Clearly, it all worked out because like I mentioned earlier I am now working there. It has definitely made me laugh though realizing the way I always said I would never work at a camp, then prayed for the Lord to surprise me, and here I am now working at a camp. Like man did the Lord surprise me. I am halfway done with my time here, and I can say I have been right about it being tiring and challenging. Yet, there have been so many moments full of joy, serving (which is not always easy for me), adventure, and new things. The Lord knew what He was doing by sending me here.

This verse has been ringing in my ears “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:8-9.

Ultimately, life is one big surprise, but how much more fun when we make ourselves open to being surprised. Imagine the joy of being in partnership with where the Lord wants you, but doing so in a way that sparks adventure and wonder. God is a creator, He is awe-inspiring, he is kind and loving. He loves to delight our souls and romance us in ways that leave us filled. Make room for Him to surprise you—you won’t regret it.