Well, God did it again. He broke into my day and used what I happened to have with me to orchestrate a situation for His glory.
It was Wednesday morning and it started as one of those days where everything that could go wrong did go wrong. That left me running a bit late. When I finally got to the BART station, I missed my train by seconds (the doors closed as I hit the platform). That mean I had to wait 15 minutes for the next train. And when it finally came, it was full of screaming kids ... some sort of school field trip. The adults that were supposed to be supervising the kids were screaming too, and it seemed like a madhouse. So I went to another train car.. only to find that it was also full of screaming kids. As a result I was not feeling "all that spiritual".
I went through 4 cars before I finally found one that was not invaded by the school's field trip. Normally I would do the logical thing.. take the closest seat. But for some reason I was drawn to a seat near the middle of the car.
I sat down next to a lady who was studying a text book, highlighting portions and making notes in the margin. As I sat down, I greeted her and told her about the mobs of kids in the other cars. She made a joke about screaming kids. We both laughed and then she went back to her reading. I happened to have my book with me... the one I wrote on hearing God's voice. So I pulled out my book and began reading it. I noticed that the lady next to me was "noticing" my book, so I also glanced at hers. It was a psychology book.
After a bit, I asked her if she was taking psychology class. She said, no, it was for her own edification. She was seeing an analyst and he had assigned the book to her. Then she pointed at my book and said, "That's my next project. I want to learn to hear the voice of God." We began to talk and I got to share some of the good news with her. We had an amazing lot in common and the Lord really directed our conversation. I got to explain the difference between religion (dos and don'ts, rules and regulations) and a dynamic relationship with the living God. That really got her interest, and she said told me that she is an atheist. She has never believed in God, but after hearing about the personal relationship part, she wants to look into this.
She told me that her analyst had told her that she needs to work on her spirituality and she is supposed to be choosing a religion to explore. She decided, based on our conversation, that Christianity might be a good one to explore. The asked if my book talked about relationship with God, then she asked me to write down the title so she could go buy a copy. She also asked me if I would be speaking in the area and she is planning to come to the monthly Friday Woman's group that I speak at.
You could just tell that the Holy Spirit was orchestrating the circumstances and that He had really gotten her interest. She is the type of person who has to carefully research things and think them through, so I did not push her for an instant decision. Instead I gave her my phone number so she could contact me when she was ready. She was excited about our meeting because her therapist said she needed to add a spiritual dimension to her life. She was looking for this type of contact, but she no idea how to go about making it. And then the contact just sort of dropped in her lap when I "happened" to sit down next to her. Then she said something really that really blessed me. She said, "It is amazing that you ended up sitting next to me just when I was looking for someone who I could get some information about pursuing my spirituality from. Until now I have been an atheist. But it seems that the God who I did not think existed has gone way out of His way to put us together so you could tell me about Him."
God did all this when I was not feeling very spiritual or thinking about kingdom things. He loves to do this.. to break into our day and use it for His glory. He loves to orchestrate situations and to control the circumstances in a what that brings glory to His name. I think this sort of experience, of participating with God in His plans, should be a normal part of our walk.. I believe this type of thing is one of the fruit of the renewal. And it sure is fun when God sets up these type of divine encounters! Why not ask Him to set one up for you this week!
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