Heart for Navajo

Cottonwood has been involved in Ministry to the Navajo people on the reservation in Arizona for 12 years. For the last eight years, that ministry has been led by Charlee and Jeannine Hambrick, retired teachers who have raised the banner and kept the fire burning for the Navajo ministry. During these eight years, they both have had serious operations and other health problems, and Charlee has been diagnosed with a serious nerve disease. These health issues, while making travel difficult, have not kept the Hambricks from giving themselves to lead us to love these Navajo neighbors. Here is a little of the story in Jeannine’s words.

It was eight years ago that Charlee and I went on our first trip. It was our intent to teach the teenagers, but there were no teenagers there, but there were all these women who had come on the van with their children. We were asked to take them. Fortunately, I had just completed a study on the fruits of the spirit, so we used that with them. After sharing the plan of salvation with the 30 ladies who attended, 15 of them chose to accept the LORD! We were completely humbled and blown away; I had never led anyone except my son to the LORD. Eight of the ladies who lived at Burnt Corn began corresponding with me regularly and doing Bible studies. They asked us to come back at Christmas time, which was the first time that we asked the body of Cottonwood to prepare boxes for them.
From this humble beginning, God began to do a mighty work in the Burnt Corn area. Since 2002, Charlee and I have made approximately thirty trips to the reservation, and 100+ people from Cottonwood have joined us on short-term mission trips. Now there are approximately 40 believers there and the beginnings of a home church. We have also made a connect with another family group that lives up the road, and we see great possibilities there!
The Navajo of this area have truly become family to us! When we go in small groups, we stay with them on the place in their homes. Several have made the trip to Texas to see us and to worship at Cottonwood. Deon Yazzie, our Navajo son, spent a year with us while completing high school at Paradigm in Dublin.
Thanks to all of you who helped to make this Christmas trip a reality! We were able to deliver 65 shoebox gifts, 16 baskets for the ladies, 8 buckets for the men, and goody bags for all the children. For many of them, those were the only Christmas gifts that they received this year, and they were most grateful. We were also able to have worship services each evening when we were there using Worship CDs and Rick Warren's CD, "The Purpose of Christmas." The last day we had a longer service, and our son, Doug, delivered a message about accepting the yoke of Christ. This was followed by a big turkey dinner to celebrate New Year's Day.
Our big news is that our son, Doug, has recently felt the LORD leading him to teach Special Education on the REZ. Last week Shiprock Associated Schools conducted a phone interview with him, and they have offered him a position subject to school board approval February 1! He is very excited, and we can see that this may be an opportunity for expanded Navajo ministry. We believe that God is up to something.
Who could know that God would use a retired couple who could barely get around at times for a purpose and a time such as this? When Mike Stroope spoke to us so many years ago about putting our "yes" on the altar, Charlee and I both did that never dreaming what God would call us to. We have been blessed beyond measure since then! The next official trip will be a VBS/Bible Study trip the end of June. We usually need 12+ people for that particular trip, and we would love to have some newcomers join some of us who have gone several times! Please continue to pray that Jesus would become known throughout the Navajo Nation!

Cross Cultural Cooking

Last night I had invited friends over for dinner, J.C. from the Congo and Nancy, from India. I had originally planned to have beef stew, but Les reminded me that Nancy was raised Hindu, and although she doesn’t actually practice that religion now, she still does not eat beef, “just in case”. So, I decided to cook some Chicken Cordon Bleu I had in the freezer. I peeled potatoes and started them cooking. Then, I went to see our next door neighbors. They moved in a few months ago, and, although I promise I have tried to get to know them, I have only been able to meet the wife and visit with her a couple of times. I knew she was having her first baby last week, and I had wanted to take dinner to them, but had not been able to contact them. This time, when I knocked, Amanda answered the door. She invited me in,showed me her brand new daughter, and introduced me to her husband, Mohammed, who is from Egypt. I was glad to meet Amanda’s family, and offered to bring dinner over. She said that I did not need to do that, but I insisted, telling her that I was cooking anyway, and it was simple to cook for two more people.
I went home and took out the Chicken Cordon Bleu (rolled chicken breast with ham and Swiss cheese inside) to cook for everyone. Then I began to reconsider. I don’t want to stereotype, but it occurred to me that Mohammed from Egypt might possibly be Muslim and, if so,I knew he would not eat ham, and he might be offended if I took him ham for supper. Since I did not really know him, I decided I did not want to take that chance.
I quickly found a chicken casserole that I had in the freezer, ready for just this kind of situation, and put it in the oven. It was frozen solid. It was going to take a little longer to cook than I had planned on. I finished the dinner for J.C. and Nancy, including a nice salad that would work for our neighbor’s dinner also. The casserole finally seemed done, and I took it out of the oven. Uh-oh. The aluminum pan it was in collapsed and spilled the casserole on the floor. Not all of it spilt. I dumped what was left into another dish, smoothed it out, sprinkled some extra cheese on top and stuck it back into the oven. It did not look too bad. By the time I had the dinner ready for Amanda and Mohammed, it was 6:30, and our guests had arrived. I ran the dinner next door and apologized for being so late. Of course they were gracious and said it was fine. I am wondering about it, tough, thinking about it from their point of view. A neighbor they barely know insists on bringing dinner. They wait until 6:30 and get a messy chicken casserole and salad…I am not sure what I would think. Maybe I will get another chance to be neighborly to them.

God's Grace Lived Out

I had a conversation on facebook with a good friend today. Some reading know her. My friend Kim is under 40 years old, and suffers from a degenerative nerve disease. As the disease has progressed, she is not able to use her left hand or arm, and cannot walk or stand. She has severe pain in her arm, and her left foot and leg. I was very moved by what she wrote to me today and I asked if I could share a part of her letter, which she gave me permission to do. Here are my friends words.

It has been hard and the more it spreads the harder it gets. I have not lost my faith, I have not lost my intimate relationship with my Father and I have not lost my spirit. We all know that God heals, we talk about it daily, in Church and amongst our church friends and even just our friends outside the church. And I have said that God has healed me. and He has. Maybe not where I am walking, or with all my pain. But, the Lord has healed. He healed me just long enough for me to go to China and love on the Bishops (missionaries there) and for me to leave there with an even more compassionate heart. Which very well can be utilized here instead of there. I am not even going to try and figure where God plans to put me....that is way bigger than any thought I can imagine. I can say, that through prayer and the Word . as of right now God is not going to heal me, I don't know if this means I will never walk or if it means It will even go into my right hand and then it really will be full blown body RSD. I do think that this disease with me and the things with (her daughter)Amanda are so much very connected. I also know that I am not a prophet nor do I have this gift, but I do know that the Lord will be glorified through ALL of this.
And, yes... I am walking through this disease with God right beside me and I am pressing into Him! I am very scared at times and pray that I won't have to move in with someone. If I have to, that will be because I will need to obey God on something. I hurt more than I can ever imagine and this pain is so so super bad and no not all the meds stop this pain. The swelling has become so bad that I don't even quite understand it and I have been counting the days down from the beginning of my left foot hurting and then it taking that leg, to my right leg becoming useless and and just seeing when it gets closer to that time,if my right hand gets it.
I just want the chance to hold baby Peighton (her first grandchild due in February) one time before that happens.

I speak to Kim every few days, and try to see her every week. She is in constant pain, and unable to walk or do simple things for herself. She is honest about her condition, but does not complain. She is not able to get out of her house often, but she uses emails and facebook to encourage and uplift other people. Her faith and hope amaze me. I just wanted to share a little of her story with whoever may read this.

As Ambassadors of Christ

As I was visiting with a friend recently, she told me about a disturbing conversation she had had with her daughter and her daughters friend. Both of the young women are college students who work as servers at a local restaurant.
They were telling my friend about the experiences they have had as servers to tables of church goers. Some are high profile people in the community, well known as ministers or as active in area churches, some are people that the girls have gone to church with. The girls said that many of these church goers are the worst costumers they have; they are rude, demanding, critical, difficult, and stingy with their tips. Even some people who spoke to my friend daughter at church did not acknowledge her in the restaurant. This is not the first time I have heard that kind of complaint.
I have a very good friend, Shelly, who has worked in food service in some capacity most of her life. She at one time worked at a Denny's that was a favorite place for the Sunday Night after church crowd. All of the servers fought over who HAD to work on Sunday nights because no one wanted to serve the church crowd. She said that they were loud and inconsiderate of other customers, they were rude to the servers, demanding, and stingy. Shelly was not a Christian then, and saw nothing in those Christians that was attractive.
Why do Christians act like that? Why would they treat a person who is helping them rudely. My guess is they just forget. They are there to eat and expect to be served and do not think about how they are acting.
In 2Corinthians 5:20, Paul said that we are the Ambassadors of Christ who are sent out to help people be reconciled to God. As His ambassadors, we have to represent Him well. They way we treat those who are there to serve us, like waitresses, cashiers, the Walmart greeters, our appliance repairman, etc, is a reflection of God to them. Let's not ever forget that. How would Jesus treat these people. Some of us may not have the courage to go to a foreign country on a mission trip, or have the nerve to share the gospel with a neighbor, but everyone can at least be nice, smile,be friendly, leave a generous tip. Not everyone feels equipped to be a strong testimony for Christ, but no one needs to behave in a way that He would be ashamed of.

A Special Orphan

We know that God loves orphans, but tonight at Bible Study, in our study of Esther, I realized that God sometimes has special plans which include the process of being orphaned. Esther was greatly used by God to deliver the Jewish people from annihilation by a pagan king. Esther was a beautiful intelligent woman. And Esther was an orphan.
This is the way Esther is presented in Esther 2:5-7 Now there was at the citadel in Susa a Jew whose name was Mordecai… He was bringing up Hadassah, that is Esther, his uncle's daughter, for she had no father or mother. Now the young lady was beautiful of form and face, and when her father and her mother died, Mordecai took her as his own daughter.
Esther lost both her mother and her father when she was young. As Beth Moore pointed out in her study, that is the greatest loss a child can have. When a child who loses both parents, she has lost those who would care for her, nurture her, and protect her. God makes it clear that when that happens, we are all responsible to come to her aid. Here are just a few verses that reflect God’s heart for orphans.
Isa 1:17
17 Learn to do good; Seek justice, Reprove the ruthless, Defend the orphan,

Jer 22:3-4
'Thus says the Lord, " Do justice and righteousness, and deliver the one who has been robbed from the power of his oppressor. Also do not mistreat or do violence to the stranger, the orphan, or the widow; and do not shed innocent blood in this place.

James 1:27
27 Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.

Esther was an orphan who was called by God and selected for a very special purpose.
Jeremiah 29:11 says, “ For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.”
God has plans for each one of us. It is hard to understand that God would plan in His providence for some children to be orphaned, to have neither father nor mother.
Esther was a special woman, put into a special position for, as she was told, “such a time as this”.
Every part of her life was important to make her the person she was for the purpose God had for her.
Tonight, Beth said, “You cannot amputate your history from your destiny. You cannot become the person God is making you without your history.” That is so important. A lot of people have some really bad things in their history. I know that God does not design bad things to happen to innocent children, but I also know that God uses all of those things to make people who are exactly what He needs for a specific purpose.

I have eight grandchildren, half of them adopted. My oldest daughter has a biological son and three children who were in an orphanage in Korea. God had great plans for those children. The fact that they were born in Korea is an important part of those plans. Part of God’s plan for them was that they needed to grow up in this family in Texas. I don’t know why God worked in that way. I am just glad and grateful that He brought them to us. These children are amazing and wonderful children and I am so excited to see the special plans God has for them.

Haiti Response

Right now, I am watching the Haiti earthquake coverage on CNN. I have had the TV on CNN almost all the time I am at home since Tuesday night. I am disappointed that Fox News Network has barely spoken of it, and the networks only seem to show it on the regular news. It seems that not many people have shown a lot of interest in this disaster. I was hurt and angry when I heard what Pat Roberson said about Haiti being under a curse caused by their ancestors. Rush Limbaugh suggested that we don't need to give to charitable organizations to help because we have given through our taxes. That disgusts me.
As I said on an earlier post, my response is greater than it would have been because our daughter was just in Haiti, but, still, should our response not be great to this huge disaster? I have watched as rescuers pulled out an 11 year old girl who had been trapped in rubble for 48 hours, who later died because of her injuries. Right now, CNN is showing scenes from her funeral, a little girl who sang in her church choir and wanted to be a lawyer someday.
I also saw a 17 month old baby girl pulled out of rubble after 3 days trapped among dead adults. When a reporter asked a relative how the baby could survive like that, she said, "It is God, only God." A woman was trapped in a market for 50 hours before being rescued. She told the reporter that she was not scared at all because she knew that God would save her. When asked how she got through it, she said, "I never stopped praying." The people of Haiti have amazed me by their faith. In the midst of the horror, surrounded by dead bodies, with very little food or water, no place to sleep, groups of people are praying and singing. I believe that God is being glorified by His people in Haiti. I hope that God is glorified by the response of His people in America.

Sweet Friend

Last year, after our Tuesday morning Ladies Bible Study, several of us women began to go to a small, locally owned Mexican Restaurant after Bible Study. The first day there, I told our server that we would pray before we ate, and asked if we cold pray for her also. Over the next months, we got to know two servers there, Vanessa and Cynthia, sweet young women that we developed relationships with. We prayed for Vanessa's daughter, Cynthia's mother, both their neighbors and sisters, whatever they needed. One day, they asked that we pray for the cook, who was angry. We gladly prayed, and hoped our food would be OK. We began to look forward to seeing the girls every week, and they were always glad to see us. When we walked in, we were hugged and greeted like family.
This fall, Cynthia did not work on Tuesdays. We missed her, but continued to enjoy seeing Vanessa. Mid November, we took a break from Bible Study. Well, this Tuesday, after study, we went to the little restaurant, and we were greeted by a very excited Cynthia. She hugged us and said that she had missed us and was very glad to see us. After she took our order, I asked if she had anything special we could pray for her. She said, "No, I am going to pray for you. I am so glad to see you again." So, when Cynthia brought us our food, she stood next to the table and prayed over us. She thanked God for us and said that she was grateful because we always made her happy when we came in.
The whole restaraunt became very quite as she prayed.
I was so touched by this sweet expression of friendship. I am also excited to see that sometimes just an offer to pray for someone can create such a bond.

Earthquake close to Home

No, we did not have an earthquake in Texas, but the earthquake in Haiti hit close. Our oldest daughter Libby was in Haiti last week. She was there Jan. 1-9, serving as part of a medical mission trip, delivering Christmas boxes, and helping out in an orphanage.
Today, when the national news came on, the first news item was that an earthquake had hit Haiti. Les and I froze and stared at each other. I feel bad that my first thought was, "Thank God Libby is home." I called Libby. The words from her blog sum up our conversation:

"I just saw that a huge earthquake hit Port au Prince a minute ago. I'm absolutely SICK!!! Not only was I so close to being there---Thank you Jesus that I'm home, but my heart is totally broken for those people. The one nice hospital, that we drove by last week, has collapsed. This is devastating. You don't understand how desperate the situation is unless you've been there. Please please please pray hard. The slums made of sheet metal are likely flattened and many many people will die. If we were sad about the state of orphans before, imagine what it will be like. My precious brothers and sisters there, Immanual, Pastor Ricardo, Markes, Milka, Nicholson, the children, Pastor Charles, OH my, please Jesus, protect them. I only hope the surrounding countries with resources will rush in to aid the people of Haiti who have nothing!!!! Gonna go cry and pray now."

It is strange. Three weeks ago, my response to this news would have been a lot of compassion, very sorry, but nothing personal. Now, I realize that one week ago, my daughter could have been killed, hurt, or at best, not able to get home for a while.
I have seen some of Libby's pictures, so now, I see those faces, wondering if those people are hurt or trapped right now, if some were killed or lost loved ones.
Libby's response is much stronger, because she knows the people. I was thinking about that, thinking when an earthquake hit China, our first concern was for our friends there. Whenever we hear anything about the Congo on the news, we listen carefully because we have friends there, same for Zanzibar and Botswana, and Germany. When there was rioting in India, a friend of ours here lost her brother. These connections bring world events closer to home. These connections also make our hearts more vulnerable. Knowing individuals in these countries make the people there more real. Instead of just a crowd of humanity, my mind sees individual faces. It is harder to close my eyes, my ears, my mind and heart to sad and difficult events when I see faces.

Little Things

"Don't look for big things, just do small things with great love...Mother Teresa

I have read that quote many times lately. I love what she said, and I find that very encouraging. So many times, Christians are waiting for and watching for the next "big thing". We need to value the small things that we all can do every day.
I want to spend a part of my day considering the question,"How can I be the hands and feet of Jesus today?" I know that He gives us multiple opportunities to minister to the people around us, but we often are not aware. We have to take our mind off of ourselves and look around to see the needs of the people, then take the responsibility to meet the need if we can.
Last week, I met with some Cottonwood women who live in and around DeLeon. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the needs of some of the people in DeLeon and how we can minister to those people. The focus ended up on three women, two are widows and all three have a lot of unmet needs. One of the widows recently lost her mother. Her mother died in Mexico on Dec.22, and she was not able to go to the funeral. The women decided to hold a small memorial service so that this woman could have some closure and celebrate the life of her mother.
Another idea was to have a "Spa Day" for the three ladies, where we would cut and style their hair, do manicures and pedicures; just make them feel special and loved. Aren't those great ideas? We decided to start with those three women, and go from there. I am excited to see what happens. I will let you all know.
Let's all ask ourselves that question, "What are some needs that I see around me and how can I help with them", and then,"How can I reach my community with the gospel of Jesus"?

Celebrate Recovery

Every Thursday night at Cottonwood, we have Celebrate Recovery, a ministry with the goal of helping people live and walk in the freedom that Jesus offers us, freedom from the habits, hurts, and hang-ups that keep us from living the life that we want, and that God wants for us.
We began Celebrate Recovery on October 1, but we began preparing in August as those who wanted to help with this ministry gathered weekly to prepare. One of the first things we realized was that we had to offer complete acceptance to anyone who walked through the doors. The only way that anyone can become truly healthy is to be in a place that they are truly accepted without judgment. We spoke weekly about having an atmosphere of grace and acceptance. I think we talked about it so much that we became convinced. We, the workers, began to feel accepted, and we began to form a strong bond. We look forward to coming together every week.
Since October, we have had a number of people join us. Some have come regularly, others have come once or twice. I know that people have been helped by this ministry. For me, right now, though, the real story is what God has done in the workers. During the month of December, our attendance has been low. This Thursday, I expected a small group, being right after the end of the holidays, and with very cold weather. We met together, and God "showed up". We had worship together, which was wonderful. Then, we gathered around Kim and prayed for her. Kim has a nerve disease and suffers severe pain in her left arm and left leg. We surrounded her and prayed for her healing, for her strengthening, for God's presence and comfort in her life.
After that time, I shared some verses about the new things that God does, that He is making all things new, that He gives us new heart and a new spirit, that Jesus made a new way to God, that God gives us a new song, a new attitude, a new walk,and a new life. That is a good way to start a new year, remembering the newness that God promises.
Then, we all wrote down something from 2009 that we want to get rid of, a bad attitude, a habitual sin, a stronghold...One by one, we all came up, shared only what we were comfortable sharing, and put the paper in the shredder, symbolically putting an end to whatever was on the paper. We were open and honest, because we all felt accepted. The time was very special. No, the crowd was not large, and most of those that we are trying to minister to were not even there, but those things did not matter. God was there, and some very special brothers and sisters were there. At the end, I felt that we had experienced something very special and God had drawn us closer together. It truly was a celebration of recovery.

God's Amazing, Astounding, Ridiculous, Crazy Love

Last night, I was thinking about God's love for us. God's love for me does not make sense. I considered the people that I love, asked myself why do I love them. For the most part, the people I love are pretty lovable, easy to love. I love my children, but they are wonderful women and very lovable. But, I remember that I loved them before they became wonderful women. I loved them the minute they were born, because I gave birth to them.

I have 8 grandchildren that I love. My love for them is exactly like the love I have for my own children. It is amazing how that works. I would say that I love those grandchildren because my own children gave birth to them, but four of the grandchildren are adopted. That made me think that it seems that adoption is the best picture of God's love for us. He loves us because He chose to love us.

The first grandchild to be adopted was Abby. When Mike and Libby went to Korea to pick her up, Abby had not done anything to cause them to love her and want her. I was thinking, what if Mike and Libby went to the agency in Korea and said, "What will Abby be able to do for us; clean house, mow the lawn, cook dinner? Will she be useful?" No "Well, will she entertain us? Can she sing or play the piano?" No. Abby cannot do anything for you. You will have to do everything for her. You will change her diapers, feed her, bathe her, carry her, provide everything she needs. She does not offer you anything. Mike and Libby knew that. They did not expect Abby to do anything for them. They wanted to love her and take care of her. They chose her.

I will never forget the night that I met Abby. All the family and many friends were at the airport to meet her. In those days, we could be at the gate when the planes arrived. We watched anxiously as the plane emptied. Finally, they came out. After Abby's 5 year old brother held her, Libby brought her and put her in my arms. I instantly fell in love. Why? I cannot explain it. I don't love all babies like that. All babies are cute and all, but I don't have that instant love for other babies, only the ones that are MINE. I had the same experience with the other three grand babies that are adopted; instant, unreasonable, fierce, ridiculous love. The love we have for these children is not reasonable, it does not really make sense. That is why it is such a great picture of God's love.

The Bible clearly says that we are born of God. We become His children by birth when we are "born again." The Bible also says that we have been adopted by God. How great that He uses both terms. That is only possible with God, to be both born and adopted into the same family. God loves us because He chose to love us. Before I was even born, He chose me, He wanted me, He LOVED me. I had nothing to offer Him. He would have to do it all, and He chose to.

10 Things I love about Ladies Bible Study

Ladies Bible Study starts next week. So I was thinking about why I so look forward to it. I came up with a list of 10 things that I love about Ladies Bible Study, not in any order, just some thoughts.

1. I like the discipline. I have something specific to study every day.
2. I enjoy new insight. Every study we do brings new insight and understanding of the word.
3. I truly love to be with the other women.
4. We always laugh and have a good time.
5. Being in Bible Study with other women builds our relationships.
6. I know that time I spend studying the Bible with an open heart and mind helps me to become more like Jesus.
7. The other women in the study always have great new things to share.
8. Every study draws me into new experiences with God.
9. The more I learn about the Bible, the more hunger I have to learn.
10. The Bible is God's love letter, and I love Him more when I study it.

Thoughts for the New Year

I love the start of the new year. There is something so great about starting over. I think God designed the times so that we would have lots of opportunities to start over.
Every day we get a fresh start. Lamentations says that God's mercies are new every morning. I need new mercies every day, and God gives them. If you think you used up most of your allotment of mercy, you get to start over with a fresh supply.
We have the days put together so that we have a new start every seven days. Every Sunday is a new start. Then, every 30 or so days, we flip the calendar page over and start a new month.
Now, we start a new year.
I want to fully take advantage of the new start. No old regrets to hold me back. No failures from last year to discourage me. No disappointments from last year to make me afraid to try something. I am ready for a clean slate.

My Life as a Story

On Thursday, I finished the book, A Million Miles in a Thousand Years, by Donald Miller. Donald sets out to find out what makes a good story for a movie or a book, and in the process, realizes that his own life is not a good story. He decides to make changes so that his life will be a better story. I want my life to be a better story, a story that means something, a story that is interesting and inspiring. God has written a story for each one of us. I want to follow the script that God has written for my life. Jeremiah 29:11 says "For I know the plans that I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope."
I know that God would not write a story for me that is boring or meaningless. He has a story for my life that is worth living. What would keep me from living out the story God has for me? Mostly fear. Fear of failure, fear of rejection, fear of losing something, fear of making a mistake, fear of what people will think. Fear will rob us of the life that God has for us. Jesus said that He came to give us abundant life. God has plans for us, and those plans include an abundant life.
One of the points of the book is that a good movie will have memorable scenes. That made me think of the movies that I love. When I think of a special movie, I remember a small scene, a special look, a funny line. It is often little scenes that make a movie really special. It is not just the epic film like "Gone with the Wind" that is a good movie. I love little movies like "Juno". A movie with a special story, filled with common people living a normal life. That is encouraging. It is not just the big events like moving to another country, or taking an international mission trip that make a life story special. I have read a quote from Mother Teresa several times recently, "In this life we cannot do great things. We can only do small things with great love." God gives us opportunities to do those small things every day.
God is the great writer. To live an extraordinary life, I just need to listen to His voice and follow what He says, without worrying that it is too small or too large, too strange too common. God is creative, and He sometimes does the unexpected. Remember, when the Messiah came, His first miracle was to turn water into wine. Certainly, that was not expected.