Always New

Every graduation has a new wrinkle.  For Cherry and I the events of this past weekend were fresh, new, and different.  The idea that a graduation weekend would contain four distinct, uniquely different events was brand new!  While the beginning unfolded traditionally, class night and graduation unfolded as uniquely Loma Linda. 
 
I thought graduation ceremonies were a serious, ponderous time for serious reflection, mild pranks, and extended periods of boredom.  For Whitney and this school, boring and traditional was never going to be the case.  First, the event did not start until the evening.  As Carli and I arrived early to save our seats, we understood the timing given Southern California’s hot sunny Sundays.  Second, everyone was in party mode!  Noise makers, jostling for seats, a competitive yet fun filled mood was the order of the day. 
 
Every year something happens that raises the bar.  While I might think air-powered horns, shooting strings, and candy necklaces are unusual, they are in this event considered standard fare.  The new items this year were confetti canons!  They were and are fantastically cool.  With a acoustic mortar like sound, the confetti is launched upwards and outwards at a forty-five degree angle, spraying paper confetti a good forty feet! 
 
As the ceremony unfolded, people yelled, hollered, and stood on their chairs in celebration!  It was fun, exciting, and noisy; just what a graduation should be like. 
 
I am not sure why I think God is always doing the same old thing.  The evidence does not support the premise.  On top of that, Divinity tells us we are constantly going to find ourselves surprised.  “This isn't a variation on the same old thing.  This is new, brand-new, something you'd never guess or dream up.  When you hear this you won't be able to say, ‘I knew that all along.’”  (Isaiah 48.7) 
 
Today is a time of new beginnings, for Whitney and for me.  Whitney is embarking out into the unknown and my prayer travels with her.  I am embarking into a new day, full of surprises.  God travels with all.