Surprise Me - I Do Every Day - September 25

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Surprise Me
By Ben McGuire

I’m incredibly hard to surprise when it comes to gifts, or so my wife tells me.

But when she manages to pull it off, I’m like a kid on Christmas morning. One Father’s Day, I walked into the garage to find a brand new drill. I was floored by her thoughtfulness.

I love (good) surprises.

I also love surprising other people. I like to randomly get things for my wife I think she’ll like. Unlike me, she’s easier to surprise. Like the time I surprised her with a trip to Disney World before we had kids.

Being willing to be surprised requires a certain measure of trust in the person doing the surprising.

Thankfully, my wife is a trusting person … because a trip to Disney isn’t the biggest surprise I’ve given her.

Two years into marriage, we moved to a country I’d lived in but she’d never even visited.

When we moved our family to a new state several years later, I bought a house she’d only seen in short videos.

There have also been hard surprises in our marriage. Miscarriage. Failed adoptions. Challenges in parenting.

But those all came from outside. What about the ones that impact how we interact with one another?

The way I chew my food. The messes I leave. How angry I get at trivial issues.

The ways I fail to serve because I’m focused on myself. (Surprise!)

Maybe you take the disappointment of bad surprises out on your spouse, or become angry with God. In that moment, trust is critical.

Is your spouse a follower of Christ? Then trust God is at work in their heart, bringing that work to completion. The Holy Spirit is the deeper agent of change.

Are you a follower of Christ? Then believe you have a loving, heavenly Father who will never abandon you … no matter what surprises life throws your way.

Read more on why some “surprises” shouldn’t be quite so shocking.

The Good Stuff: And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. (Philippians 1:6)

Action Points:

  • How do you respond to the surprises in life—particularly the negative ones? In some of your greater areas of dissatisfaction in marriage, what role have your expectations played?
  • In what ways could you be more patient with your spouse?
  • In what ways have you questioned God’s goodness or faithfulness, struggling to trust?

I Do Every Day Let’s Go Vertical! prayer guide

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Salem Radio Network Speakers

Larry Elder is an American lawyer, writer, and radio and television personality who calls himself the "Sage of South Central" a district of Los Angeles, Larry says his philosophy is to entertain, inform, provoke and to hopefully uplift. His calling card is "we have a country to save" and to him this means returning to the bedrock Constitutional principles of limited government and maximum personal responsibility. Elder's iconoclastic wit and intellectual agility makes him a particularly attractive voice in a nation that seems weary of traditional racial dialogue.” – Los Angeles Times.

Mike Gallagher Mike Gallagher began his broadcasting career in 1978 in Dayton, Ohio. Today, he is one of the most listened-to talk radio show hosts in America, recently having been ranked in the Talkers Magazine “Heavy Hundred” list – the 100 most important talk radio hosts in America. Prior to being launched into national syndication in 1998, Mike hosted the morning show on WABC-AM in New York City. Today, Talkers Magazine reports that his show is heard by over 3.75 million weekly listeners. Besides his radio work, Mike is seen on Fox News Channel as an on-air contributor, frequently appearing on the cable news giant.

Hugh Hewitt is one of the nation’s leading bloggers and a genuine media revolutionary. He brings that expertise, his wit and what The New Yorker magazine calls his “amiable but relentless manner” to his nationally syndicated show each day.

When Dr. Sebastian Gorka was growing up, he listened to talk radio under his pillow with a transistor radio, dreaming that one day he would be behind the microphone. Beginning New Year’s Day 2019, he got his wish. Gorka now hosts America First every weekday afternoon 3 to 6pm ET. Gorka’s unique story works well on the radio. He is national security analyst for the Fox News Channel and author of two books: "Why We Fight" and "Defeating Jihad." His latest book releasing this fall is “War For America’s Soul.” He is uniquely qualified to fight the culture war and stand up for what is great about America, his adopted home country.

Broadcasting from his home station of KRLA in Los Angeles, the Dennis Prager Show is heard across the country. Everything in life – from politics to religion to relationships – is grist for Dennis’ mill. If it’s interesting, if it affects your life, then Dennis will be talking about it – with passion, humor, insight and wisdom.

Sean Hannity is a conservative radio and television host, and one of the original primetime hosts on the Fox News Channel, where he has appeared since 1996. Sean Hannity began his radio career at a college station in California, before moving on to markets in the Southeast and New York. Today, he’s one of the most listened to on-air voices. Hannity’s radio program went into national syndication on September 10, 2001, and airs on more than 500 stations. Talkers Magazine estimates Hannity’s weekly radio audience at 13.5 million. In 1996 he was hired as one of the original hosts on Fox News Channel. As host of several popular Fox programs, Hannity has become the highest-paid news anchor on television.

Michelle Malkin is a mother, wife, blogger, conservative syndicated columnist, longtime cable TV news commentator, and best-selling author of six books. She started her newspaper journalism career at the Los Angeles Daily News in 1992, moved to the Seattle Times in 1995, and has been penning nationally syndicated newspaper columns for Creators Syndicate since 1999. She is founder of conservative Internet start-ups Hot Air and Twitchy.com. Malkin has received numerous awards for her investigative journalism, including the Council on Governmental Ethics Laws (COGEL) national award for outstanding service for the cause of governmental ethics and leadership (1998), the Reed Irvine Accuracy in Media Award for Investigative Journalism (2006), the Heritage Foundation and Franklin Center for Government & Public Integrity's Breitbart Award for Excellence in Journalism (2013), the Center for Immigration Studies' Eugene Katz Award for Excellence in the Coverage of Immigration Award (2016), and the Manhattan Film Festival's Film Heals Award (2018). Married for 26 years and the mother of two teenage children, she lives with her family in Colorado. Follow her at michellemalkin.com. (Photo reprinted with kind permission from Peter Duke Photography.)

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Surprise Me - I Do Every Day - September 25

Carbonatix Pre-Player Loader

Audio By Carbonatix

I Do Every Day devotional banner

Surprise Me
By Ben McGuire

I’m incredibly hard to surprise when it comes to gifts, or so my wife tells me.

But when she manages to pull it off, I’m like a kid on Christmas morning. One Father’s Day, I walked into the garage to find a brand new drill. I was floored by her thoughtfulness.

I love (good) surprises.

I also love surprising other people. I like to randomly get things for my wife I think she’ll like. Unlike me, she’s easier to surprise. Like the time I surprised her with a trip to Disney World before we had kids.

Being willing to be surprised requires a certain measure of trust in the person doing the surprising.

Thankfully, my wife is a trusting person … because a trip to Disney isn’t the biggest surprise I’ve given her.

Two years into marriage, we moved to a country I’d lived in but she’d never even visited.

When we moved our family to a new state several years later, I bought a house she’d only seen in short videos.

There have also been hard surprises in our marriage. Miscarriage. Failed adoptions. Challenges in parenting.

But those all came from outside. What about the ones that impact how we interact with one another?

The way I chew my food. The messes I leave. How angry I get at trivial issues.

The ways I fail to serve because I’m focused on myself. (Surprise!)

Maybe you take the disappointment of bad surprises out on your spouse, or become angry with God. In that moment, trust is critical.

Is your spouse a follower of Christ? Then trust God is at work in their heart, bringing that work to completion. The Holy Spirit is the deeper agent of change.

Are you a follower of Christ? Then believe you have a loving, heavenly Father who will never abandon you … no matter what surprises life throws your way.

Read more on why some “surprises” shouldn’t be quite so shocking.

The Good Stuff: And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. (Philippians 1:6)

Action Points:

  • How do you respond to the surprises in life—particularly the negative ones? In some of your greater areas of dissatisfaction in marriage, what role have your expectations played?
  • In what ways could you be more patient with your spouse?
  • In what ways have you questioned God’s goodness or faithfulness, struggling to trust?

I Do Every Day Let’s Go Vertical! prayer guide

Visit the FamilyLife® Website
FamilyLife 728 banner

 

Salem News Channel Today

Sponsored Links

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