Photo and Commentary ©2026 by Robert Howson
Monday, February 9, 2026
The pages of Scripture have a good deal to say about the unexpected. This includes both warnings against the dangers of failing to be prepared, and, the joy of unanticipated discovery. Christ’s parable of the Ten Virgins (Matthew 25) comes to mind as a powerful example of the negative sort as do the words of Solomon found in Ecclesiastes 9:12: “Moreover, no one knows when their hour will come: As fish are caught in a cruel net or birds are taken in a snare so people are trapped by evil times that fall unexpectedly upon them. (NIV)
Birds provided another reminder of the unexpected, this time from a personal meeting. We think of the tropics as filled with color, of brightly plumaged parrots dangling from the branches amid flowers of vivid hues. And that stereotype can certainly be true, but what I didn’t expect was the degree of color added by a North American migrant. I knew Baltimore Orioles wintered in the area, but what I didn’t expect was their number and to see them in full breeding plumage providing some of the most vibrant colors we encountered. I also didn’t expect them to be so color selective in terms of the food they eat. They are drawn to the ripest fruits and will ignore yellow cherries, even if they are ripe, and pass on green grapes, like Thompson Seedless, because they don’t display deep, rich color.
Fortunately for us there is also unexpected good news offered to us as well. And not surprisingly, that good news centers on the person of Christ. It’s unexpected, not because we can’t picture Him as the bearer of good news, but because it’s so good, it’s beyond our wildest dreams. Look how Paul describes this: “Now to him who by his power within us is able to do far more than we ever dare to ask or imagine—to him be glory in the Church through Jesus Christ for ever and ever, amen!” (Ephesians 3:20 J.B Phillips New Testament) So, if I understand this passage correctly, we are left with the most pleasant of paradoxes, that we should look forward with great expectations to being wonderfully surprised.