What a Coincidence???

The idea has been rolling around in my mind for some time.  Is there really any such thing as karma or coincidence?  If Faceook commentary is any indication then I would be compelled to say, “

Yes”.  Fortunately for all of us, my Bible tells a different story.

The terms karma & coincidence get tossed around a lot, & often the words are used synonymously.  Usually karma is used to mean – what goes around comes around and coincidence implies a happy accident. I had thought to make a comparative outline, proving my point against karma & coincidence, but debate was never my forte.  Besides – my goal isn’t to argue, but rather share how God has shown me that His will in my life is the antithesis of coincidence.  And thank God it is!

The last six months has been a veritable escalator – it has its ups & downs, is always moving, has a tendency to trip you up when you least expect it & even when you get to your destination you’re rarely where you planned on going.  (One could deduce I’ve had run-ins with the moving staircase.)  My plans have changed, expectations have been altered. But through it all I have found comfort in knowing that I’m not like the wheat chaff blowing in the wind, but rather there is purpose in each of life’s moments.

This concept became glowingly clear to me following my most recent move.  I won’t bore you with the details, except to tell you how awed I am by God’s handiwork in the big & small details.  Uncertainty had made me hesitant to uproot my life from a place I’d called home since beginning my professional career.  I was especially intimidated by the thought of starting over in a new town… new friends, new job….  I decided to put the situation in God’s hands (the best place for it to be).  I asked Him to provide a buyer and a smooth transaction if I was to sell my place.  Days later a reasonable offer was made – there it was – my answer.  Days later, the buyer got cold feet & the offer was tabled.  I was disappointed, but was trusting that it wasn’t God’s will for me to move.  I continued to pray for God’s will in the matter.  Shortly before the new year another buyer made an offer – everything went smoothly and fast – real fast.  Long story (semi) short, I closed on my new home a week after I finalized the sale of my other house.  God worked things out in ways I could never imagined.  Some might call it coincidence, but I know that only the Great God I serve would care enough about the little things wo make sure my mailbox was on the same side of the street as my house, when most are across the street.  Only my God would provide a home layout that meets my physical & medical needs better than ever before and only my God would bless me with a home that is beyond what I had dared to hope for. Coincidence?  I think not! 

Jesus explained it far better than I ever could in Matthew 10:29 --  Not one sparrow “will fall to the ground without your Father’s will”.  He’s talking about how deep His concern & care for our well-being runs.  He knows each of His creation, even down to the hairs on our heads.  He knows each of the stars by name & He knows each time a sparrow falls.  If He cares so deeply about the small things, imagine the importance He places on you & me!  I take great comfort in that, I hope you do to.  Finally, I think John Piper summed it up best when he said, “In the end, one must finally come to see that if there is a God in heaven, there is no such thing as mere coincidence, not even in the smallest affairs of life:  -- Never forget, it’s no coincidence that God loves you!

-V