"Shaken"

What a roller coaster of emotions the past few weeks have been. My good friend, Thomas Escalon, was raised from the dead (it's a long story if you don't know it). A month later he survived a quintuple bypass heart surgery and is recovering at a rapid rate - it's nothing short of miraculous. God is seeming to put the power of prayer on display in our lives. He brings us to the point of death - twice in the same month - and miracles happened both times. Why are miracles so surprising. Does Scripture not say that the same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead lives in us. The same Spirit. Not some western-civilization, modern version of the same Spirit. Not some weak, dumbed-down, tame version. The same Spirit. Miracles should be more common. I'm so grateful that God chose to put that on display to us as a church this month. He's teaching us to pray, He's showing us that He's got this thing. He's drawing us closer and closer to Him, but He has to shake us up to do it. Thank you for the shaking.

For another story on shakes... Yesterday, on my day off, the fam and I journeyed northward to Round Rock for the opening of the new IKEA store. Actually, it opened on Wendesday, but we figured we would miss some crowds on Thursday. So we found our way through the circus of cars, parking attendants, and parking lots. We parked in an overflow parking lot across the street. As we were stepping into the street, I looked down to grab Jacob's hand. In that instant I stepped into a drainage gutter and twisted my ankle in two different directions other than what it was created to twist in. Spraining my ankles has become a hobby of mine beginning in college, but this was by far the most pain I've ever felt in my ankle - maybe the most pain period. I hopped around, yelled at my wife (she was the closest person and I had to yell at someone!), and somehow managed to prevent both expletives and tears from coming out.

I wasn't about to drive all that way and not experience IKEA, so I did with much pain as I hobbled arround the ginormous store. It lived up to they hype. I love that place and wish I had a lot more money to spend there. Afterward, traffic was horrible, so we stopped and watched a movie. During the flick, I propped my foot up - yes on the seat in front of me, I know it's against the rules, but I was in a lot of pain. Anyway, we stopped for a bite to eat at Fudrucker's (still waiting for the traffic to die down). We had just begun to eat when they announced that someone's Strawberry Shake was ready. For those of you who don't know, it is my opinion that a Strawberry Shake is one of the finest experiences in this life (especially if it's from Annie's on South Post Oak in Houston). Anyway, I told Holly that I thought that maybe my own Strawberry Shake would make my ankle feel better. Jacob quickly chimed in that he thought it would heal the scratch on his face. We were in agreement. Now, I have to confess that it was a plea more than a prayer, but before I could really work my case, the manager came up with a beautifully crafted Strawberry Shake in his hand and said, "I accidentally made an extra one of these, would you guys like to have it?" Yes we would, and yes we did. It was a beautiful thing, and my ankle did begin to feel better for a few minutes.

Maybe the lesson is something about how the lows and hard times make the good things even better. I'm thankful for the Strawberry Shake, but I'm more thankful for life and breath. Consider me shaken by the provision of my Father.