Random

It took me a while to accept the content of our conversation.  The fact that my mother had called me early in the morning was not, in itself, that unusual.  I had just started work in a new city.  She was an early riser and knew that I would need to be at work on time.  What better time to check in with your son?  By the second or third phone call, I had accepted the reality of being woken up to my mother's cheery voice.  That was not the puzzle on this particular morning.  The sequence of her questions was causing me to pause.
“How are you this morning?”“Fine mother, how are you?”  I am always formal this early.“What are you doing for lunch?”“Eating.”“Any specific plans?”“No, not that I know of.”“Good, I will see you for a late lunch.”“What?”  The only sound in my ear was an emotionless dial tone.
Mom lived a six-hour plus drive away.  The first time I assumed the worst!  Someone must be dying or at least sick.  A catastrophic event must have hit the family.  In each case, I was treated to a wonderful lunch with my mother, chatting about life and the events at hand.
Mom always has always had a random streak.  I think it is part of her genetic make-up.  She has the interest, willingness, and enough craziness within to respond to life's opportunities, no how crazy, random, or unusual they might seem to others.  I look back now and realize that I am much richer for her random acts.
As I approach the age of the height of her randomness, I find myself inspired yet somewhat embarrassed.  My mom was a lot more willing to be crazy than I am!  When someone  “met an Ethiopian eunuch coming down the road”, (Acts 8.27) the meeting occurred because someone was willing to act on a God-inspired random act.  Being connected to God, giving the self the freedom to respond, and acting on the Spirit's leading is a great way to live.