Unexpected Treasures

We serve a God who is identified in the first chapter of the book of James as the giver of all good gifts:
17 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. 18 He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created.

God is at work all around us, in a much more consistent way that we realize, I think.   And, God will intervene in our lives, to provide direction, to arrange circumstances for our good and His glory, and to bring spiritual growth.   It's important that we develop a sensitivity to the work of the Holy Spirit, learning to recognize those "God-moments", when He shows up, when He is directing us, when He has orchestrated a divine appointment.   As we gain an awareness of His presence with us, we learn to walk closer with Him.

Proverbs 2 points to God as our source of wisdom, who will bring us His treasures, even in the moments of life when we may not expect:
1 My son, if you accept my words and store up my commands within you, 2 turning your ear to wisdom and applying your heart to understanding, 3 and if you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding, 4 and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, 5 then you will understand the fear of the LORD and find the knowledge of God.


Here's an interesting and instructive piece from the Charleston (W.Va.) Daily Mail:

A lady went to a West Virginia flea market and discovered a box of a few random items - she figured she could possibly that brown leather Paul Bunyan doll to folk art enthusiasts for a tiny profit.  She did like the plastic cow.    There was also a painting in the box - with swirls of green and pink, carrying a plaque emblazoned with the word RENOIR.  She did like the golden frame, but assumed the painting itself was a fake.  She paid the $7 for the entire box, and put it in her shed.

Now, about two years after that visit to a flea market, the woman is selling the painting through the  Potomack auction house, which determined that the piece is a bona fide work by Pierre-Auguste Renoir, the renowned French impressionist.  The auctioneers think the painting could yield as much as $100,000, if not more, when it goes on the auction block Sept. 29.   For the painting, you see, is the original 1879 work with the English title of "Landscape on the Banks of the Seine."

You know, this reminded me that sometimes things are not as they seem, and there can be treasure in the unexpected every day.  Sometimes God will show up in ways that we do not recognize.   And, when He does, it's important that we are sensitized and that we follow His direction and perhaps learn the lessons that He intends. 

Even in the mundane, everyday, $7 events of life, when everything seems to be routine or insignificant, God may be working something highly significant, to bring honor to His name and to remind us of His faithfulness.  And, when we discern that we are in the midst of a "God-moment", we can prayerfully and intentionally step out and follow Him into what He has in store for us.   So, when life seems pretty ordinary, remember that you have a relationship with an extraordinary God, who is working and speaking, and always with you - with that mix, you know that He can intervene in our lives and bring the unexpected in order to bring His will to us.