Five Minute Friday – Spontaneous

My husband likes to tell everyone that “spontaneous” for me is a three-month notice. I think he’s joking. Maybe.

It’s no secret that I am administrative by nature and prefer to have all my ducks in a row. The problem is, there is always that one little errant duck that seems to go wandering, no matter how much I try to corral it into line. I also have a few folks in my life who continually prod it to move beyond the confines of my control — a feat they derive immense pleasure from, I’m sure.

Like the friend who invited our family to go on a spontaneous vacation with them — departing three days from the issued invitation date. Did I mention we were to leave the day after I completed a week-long Vacation Bible School with more than a hundred little people? And that our teenage son was arriving home from a mission trip out West the same day as our departure?t And that we had barely known their family for more than a few months? And that between our two families, we had eight kids ranging in age from four to seventeen? And that we were going on a houseboat? In the middle of a Tennessee lake? With no means of escaping other than to dive overboard?

It was a sink-or-swim adventure. Thankfully, I think we mostly swam.

Then there was the time my teenage daughter spontaneously accepted a friend request on Snapchat from a “friend of a friend.” The next thing I knew, two brothers and their buddy hopped in a truck and made a whirlwind road trip from Kansas to Ohio to meet in person. The following month, they were tagging along on our family vacation with an additional brother and cousin in tow. Those three brothers wormed their way into our hearts and ended up living with our family for a year and a half. Of course, they had an older brother in North Carolina who was alone that first year for the holidays, so we “spontaneously” invited him to join us for Christmas. A few years later, he married our oldest daughter.

And that, friends, is most definitely the condensed version of this particular tale.

A lot can happen with a spontaneous “yes.”

Spontaneously grabbing a milkshake with friends can evolve into a precious conversation, encouraging hearts and souls.

Spontaneous cookouts lead to singing songs around a fire or simply enjoying the accompaniment of nature’s choir beneath a canopy of stars.

A spur-of-the-moment kayaking trip downriver creates lasting memories with family and friends.

A spontaneous agreement to help a sister prepare and serve a meal evolves into a part-time catering career.

An impromptu decision to write a few Bible lessons for children leads to developing an entire VBS curriculum.

My life is proof that a lot can happen in a spontaneous moment. And those moments can thread themselves into memorable treasures to be cherished for a lifetime.

Although I still like a schedule, I’ve allowed God to set my feet to wander from the path of well-laid plans and follow His lead, at least occasionally. Sometimes that has left me in the middle of a crowd of folks to feed and house. Other times it has taken me to distant lands to join my heart with missionaries and servants pouring their hearts out for God’s kingdom. And sometimes, angels in disguise have appeared on my doorstep or in line at the grocery store or a ballpark or family gathering – when I slow down long enough to notice them.

Opening my heart to spontaneity can still be hard.
I’m still learning to navigate chasing down that wayward duck.
But if I keep my heart in sync with Jesus, I’m guaranteed to find a blessing hidden along the way, no matter how spontaneous the path.

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This post was written in conjunction with https://fiveminutefriday.com/2022/09/15/fmf-writing-prompt-link-up-spontaneous/ Teaming up with an online group of writers who encourage others to share the words God has given them. The gist is to write for five minutes on a one-word prompt, then post your writing and link up with others who do the same — no overthinking, no deep editing, just free-writing in a short amount of time.