You don’t know what the day will bring.

~Proverbs 27:1b NLT

Quickly, we learned to expect the unexpected.

The day was a normal in-service day at school. The principal hadn’t originally scheduled it but, due to a conference schedule change, had inserted one to accommodate parents who may have planned a long weekend for themselves and their families.

The day began with instructions from our headmaster. For those who needed to, they were to work on curriculum guides. The following year, our school was up for re-accreditation, and this had to be done to prepare. Those who had finished were to help those who hadn’t—or hadn’t even started. I had been finished for some time, so I helped.

That was the early morning. At 11:15, we were all to meet on the baseball field, sit in the stadium seats, and share our six-year goals for the school. I hadn’t really thought about distant goals. After all, I was nearing retirement age. I left the goal-setting to the younger ones. So, I talked to some of them to see what their goals were for the school.

At the designated time, we gathered in our seats. Almost everyone shared goals. I listened . . . and agreed with most of them. As we neared the end, one teacher said she had something she wanted to share, but she wanted to be last. Finally, her time came—and with it, the unexpected.

Her daughter had chosen to leave our school the previous year. I had taught her daughter throughout middle school. I didn’t know why she had left, but I guess it was for reasons I didn’t know about. Reasons that had hurt the mom. Mom said she appreciated the teachers who asked how her daughter was doing at her new school. But she was hurt because so many of her daughter’s teachers had not inquired.

Silence prevailed. No one knew what to say. One teacher spoke up and defended herself and her peers. No one else said anything. Finally, with wisdom and tact, the headmaster addressed the issue and closed the session. The unexpected.

Wise King Solomon warns against bragging about what we’ll do tomorrow since we have no assurance of another day. We never know what any day will bring, so we must learn to expect the unexpected.

Praying daily in the morning or the night before for God to give wisdom for every situation is a good start. A regular reading of biblical wisdom also helps. When we have these two pieces of spiritual armor, we’ll do a better job of reacting wisely when the unexpected arrives. And it will.

Experience is also a good teacher. Our headmaster had been leading schools for many years. I’m sure this wasn’t the first time he had faced a similar situation.

The unexpected comes in many forms—relational, financial, emotional, spiritual—but whatever the area, we need to expect it and then rely on God to give us the strength, wisdom, and words to face and overcome it. He is reliable and will never fail us.

How can you prepare for the unexpected in life?

Father, give me wisdom to expect the unexpected and to react with godly wisdom.

Genre: Non-fiction

Copyright 2024: Expect the Unexpected: Martin Wiles: All Rights Reserved