providence

People call it luck. Some refer to it as chance or fate. Others say it’s just a coincidence, but I call it Divine Intervention or Providence.

Things do happen for the reasons they are meant to happen and at times we may never know why. Other times, we can look back, reflecting to see the reason, but always know that God does not make mistakes.

I recall a recent story I heard about a Christian man who was working in an office building. He left work one day before Easter weekend, but felt prompted by the Spirit to return to the office and invite a coworker to his church for the Sunday service that weekend. The fellow coworker was not interested and told the man that he was an athiest and not to bother talking to him about “religion.” The man then shared his faith but respected his fellow colleague’s choice. He left the building wondering why God had wanted him to talk to this man.

Years later, the Christian fellow became a pastor and was serving at a church. One Sunday, a man approached him after the service, shook his hand and said, “Thank you.” The pastor was confused, “For what?”

“Well, many years ago, I was a construction worker and we were doing some tiling in an office space downtown. I was on the floor. You probably didn’t notice me the day you came into the office and tried to convince your athiest friend to come to the Easter service. I heard your message, was moved by what you said and when I got home, I told my wife and kids that we were going to church that Sunday. My life has never been the same. We became believers and now here we are here, listening to your message today because of that.”

We might not know how someone was affected by what we said, how we treated another or even why we shared our story. But we can know that God is always at work, through His people, in ways we may never know. Keep the faith and share your story, smile and shekels with others and see the Hand of God work in lives.

In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. Ephesians 1:11-12