Surprising Grace

Have you ever had one of those days when you just didn't seem to be all there? Everyday tasks seem so much harder? That was my day yesterday. I woke still worn out from the day before and feeling like I was on the verge of a cold. It didn't help that it was time to spring forward for daylight savings time. I could have used another hour of sleep.

I had plans to attend a concert with friends in the evening and I seriously considered canceling out. The featured artist was to be Chris Tomlin - one of my favorite singer/songwriters. I have a number of his tunes on my ipod. But I was more inclined to go to bed early and call it a day...not just because I was tired, but because I just wanted to put the day behind me. Tomorrow would be a new day. I could always listen to my ipod.

I chose to push through my malaise and make the 45 minute drive to the arena.

It's been years (many years) since I've been to a concert of this kind. I naively thought I was going to listen to some music. What was I thinking? It was three hours of worship...and a lot of that was standing. They made it so easy for the 6,000 plus folks packed into the ShoWare Center. The lyrics were displayed on the two gigantic screens bracketing the stage.

I admit, it took me a few songs to make the transition. I even turned to one of my friends and said I hoped we weren't going to be standing all night. But my fatigue and malaise seemed to melt away as I sang from my heart.

There's something very special in the experience of lifting your voice in praise with thousands of others. Scripture tells us that God inhabits the praise of God's people. God's loving presence filled the place. After a lackluster day, God surprised me with a wonderful experience of Grace. It would have been so much easier to stay home. I'm glad I chose the discomfort of getting out, so that I could be surprised and renewed by Grace. It was a new day last night...I didn't have to wait for the dawn.