Faith that Can't be Surprised

Scripture: In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah, the Lord moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and also to put it in writing. Ezra 1:1

Observation: Despite the fact Cyrus released the Jews from exile and decreed the rebuilding of the temple, no one I've heard has ever called him a great servant of God. And yet, God acts directly through him to achieve his purposes and fulfill his promises. Based on his subsequent decree, Cyrus is clearly a believer in Yahweh ... so why would anyone be surprised when he acts?

Application: The path God takes to accomplish his will in the world can sometimes be BOTH explicitly and clearly spelled out, and totally unexpected. Through several prophets, including Jeremiah, Daniel, and Ezekiel, God declared the timing of the release of the Jews, how they would be releases, and who would declare their release ... and yet, it seems surprising that one of the first acts the new king of Persia would perform would be to actually do what God said would be done.

How often do we behave that way now? We - believers, members of a church, my wife and I - receive clear information about what God intends to do and accomplish, and then we are amazed when it actually happens.

I read a statement yesterday: "Faith is NOT believe that God can, it's knowing that he will." I wonder if that means that faith also means never being surprised ... if you have faith, you know God will do whatever needs to be done to achieve his perfect will.

Prayer: Lord, may I have the kind of faith that cannot be surprised by your greatness ... and may your greatness be SO amazing that I'll be surprised anyway :-)

Bonus Scripture:
How lovely is your dwelling place,
    Lord Almighty!
My soul yearns, even faints,
    for the courts of the Lord;
Better is one day in your courts
    than a thousand elsewhere. Psalm 84:1-2a,10a