by Dale Shumaker
4spirit@gmail.com
What is so fascinating about this business book is that so many are fascinated with it. Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the HiddenSide of Everything has been at the top of best selling book lists for weeks. Author Steven D. Levitt (co-authored with Stephen J. Dubner) has taken economics to an intriguing application. Using economic principles in an unusual way, he found correlations between things that logically may not seem to relate at all.
It is how we look at things that makes a difference and Levitt and taken us down a road to look at things in a curious way. He uses mystery, surprise and intrigue to get his points across… (sounds like a trailer to a movie theme). He says, “tools of economics can be applied to subjects that are more interesting,” i.e., modern life’s way to use incentives, conventional wisdom is often wrong, experts tend to use information to their own advantage.
The book does not carry a central theme throughout but rather a random exploration of a variety of interesting stuff. The authors have given themselves permission to explore any “freakish curiosities” that captured their interests… thus the title "Freakonomics."
Some of the random discovers are...8 glasses of water a day don’t do anything for your health, most crack dealers live with their moms. When researching a crack gang in Chicago, it was found they run “crack” businesses, much like a corporate hierarchy would… big pay at the top and little pay for the foot soldiers. McDonald’s and the crack business have a lot in common. Addictive qualities of the crack business are similar to what draws grandma’s and grandchild to McDonald's every day.
So why would any one want to read this. I wondered the same thing. Out of curiosity I started reading it. It turned out to be fascinating and with a lot of surprises. They take a different look at common events that redirects our perspective on what is going on around us. I found their website to be equally interesting. If you aren’t into books, you will find some of their interesting stuff here:
http://www.freakonomics.com/
We are so fascinated by the mysterious, peculiar, unusual, unexpected. But in these unique views come new answers to things. We would benefit to look at things differently, find new answers…. and many may surprise us.
Jesus delighted in surprises.
Geffry Fields talks about this in his blog, Jesus Is Us, June 25, 2005 " Mystery of Spirit... Supernatural delights in surprises":
http://jesusisus.blogspot.com/2005/06/mystery-of-spirit-supernatural.html
The Spirit is faithful to give us answers, but in unusual ways. The Jesus Spirit comes to us many times in a surprising way.
“We don’t need to know how,
but that He will.”
In the midst of a storm, He came to the one’s He loved, but they thought He was a ghost. (Matthew 14:25-27)
Jesus, after His death, came back to talk with two of His followers along the road (Luke 24:16-17). They weren’t expecting Him there. They didn't even recognize Him although they were looking for Him. He came to them in a way that caught them by surprise.
He entered a room where the door was locked and appeared to His followers again after everyone thought He was dead and gone. Even with the doors locked and presumed inaccessible, Jesus come to those hiding in fear for their lives. (John 20:19)
(Even when we lock Him out, He still finds a way to show up!)
Jesus Spirit continues to do that. He comes to us when we least expect it and in mysterious and unusual ways.
No matter what is going on, look for Jesus to answer your heart’s desires but remember, He may show up in unexpected ways.
He delights to surprise us.
Again, you don’t need to know how He will answer a request you have, solve a problem you have, accomplish an ambitious goal you have, but you just need to know that He will.
Look for Jesus Spirit to appear “unexpectedly” in your life.
So the next time someone throws mud in your face, take another look at what just happened. It may be God’s element of a surprise for you. Jesus put mud in a guy’s eyes so he could see. (John 9:6)
Jesus appears through uncommon circumstances, the unbecoming,
the not-so-prestigious.
Some may say this is freaky, but don’t overlook the unusual as God’s answer for you . If we don’t look at things differently, we may miss the answer He has staring right at us. Look at the common, what is right there, and see where God has His surprise, your answer, veiled right before you.
Be open to His Spiritual creativity, have faith in little things, the peculiar, unexpected… it may be Jesus trying to appear to you in person.
Be delighted, He is coming, Right Now!, to surprise you.
Jesus will come when least expected,
so ALWAYS be expecting Him.
Look for Him in the unusual.
“Truly, O God of Israel, our Savior,
you work in strange and mysterious ways.”
(Isaiah 45:15, NLT)
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