coincidence

A random act of kindness…God is Good!

Categories blessing, Christian, coincidence, God coincidences, God is good, random act of kindness16 Comments on A random act of kindness…God is Good!

Last Saturday while I was waiting for my daughter’s ballet class to finish I caught up with a new friend, a friend who has already blessed my life in many ways …

As we finished up, she saw a friend of hers, a woman she had told me about, a woman who was also kind, gentle and gracious.  She said hello to her friend and as she spoke her friend suddenly said with tears …

“Please excuse me, my dog died last night …”

As her friend said this I was filled with compassion for her and nearly started crying too … I feel like a sop when that happens, because I can tear up so easily at times, especially when I am filled with compassion or love or empathy … filled with Him … for another …

I touched her hand … aware that I was a complete stranger and not wanting to “get in her space,” and I gave my condolences …

I said goodbye to my friend, and with another hour and a half to wait, I wondered what I was to do. I asked God, and with a suddenness I knew I had to buy this woman flowers … a ballet mum too … what would she think?!

I started to walk, hoping to find a florist.  I trusted she would still be in the coffee place I had met her in when I got back, thinking how she may find me a bit “odd” to do something like that, but I thought “what can it hurt to give her flowers … to do something kind …? … but still!”

I eventually ended up at one of the train stations in the city, and found my way to a flower stall.  I immediately saw some miniature cyclamens … and I knew I was to buy her the deep pink ones …

“Odd,” I thought, feeling a bit shy about it.  I looked at the other flowers on sale … she seemed so gracious that I thought I should perhaps buy her a potted orchid but I kept being drawn back to the deep pink cyclamens …

I selected the plant I felt God draw me to, bought them and asked for them to be wrapped.

I wandered back past the coffee shop … she wasn’t there …

“Blow, I thought” and decided on my friend’s suggestion (who I had just spoken to on the phone about another matter) to leave them with a person at the ballet school to pass them on …

Still with time to wait I went back to the same coffee shop to sit down outside and have another cup of tea, thinking I may see her again …

I got on with a bit of texting, sipped my tea, and contemplated life, looked at the passers-by, enjoyed the greenery of the trees over the road … and as I did she walked past …

I called out and said a bit awkwardly “… these are for you, I hope you don’t mind, but I felt to get them for you … I just wanted to bless you …”

She looked and cried, tears ran down her cheeks and she told me a little of the story.

I said I had felt to get her the pink cyclamens …

The tears kept running down her cheeks and she said that her little beloved dog’s collar was the same pink, and the dressing gown that belonged to her daughter that her little dog had been buried in, was purple (the cyclamens had touches of purple at their base, and the flowers were wrapped in purple).

“Only God!” I thought.

I said I had felt to get her the hot pink … and had thought they may be able to sit on her kitchen table in memory of her dog …

She said “thank you, it’s so kind” …

I backed away, not wanting to invade her space in any way … but I said “I just wanted to bless you … I hope it is ok … just a random act of kindness …”

And I wished her well.

We had spoken about more than just that, but the exchange was brief, in that I wanted to really respect her privacy, but I said I would sit for a while longer if she felt like stopping later, but if not, there would be no offence …

And so I finished my tea in the morning sunshine … she didn’t come back, and that was ok … she was too tender….

Regardless … I don’t believe the “coincidence” was lost on her …

I had mentioned praying for her family, but other than that I didn’t mention Jesus, I didn’t pray for her then and there, I didn’t get in her face about anything, including the God coincidence …. I just gave her the flowers that just happened to be the same colour as the collar on her little dog and the gown in her little dog was buried …

Did I feel awkward?

Yes!

But I know when God moves us to do something, it is worth feeling awkward for, it is worth taking the risk and obeying, for you never really know what is gong on in a person’s life … but He does and perhaps through that one act of obedience, that one act of kindness they too will know that …

God is Good!

“Reunification” was the word-God is Good!

Categories As you go, Christian, coincidence, God coincidences, God is good, God's love, Love, Stopping for the one, Unity22 Comments on “Reunification” was the word-God is Good!

Yesterday afternoon I was travelling interstate to attend a conference. The plane landed and I struggled to free my on board luggage from the overhead locker, and unintentionally invaded a gentleman’s space.

I apologised and as we stood to wait to disembark he asked if it was “home” and I said “no … I was attending a Christian conference”. He went on to say he was visiting his family, but that he was meant to have his daughter with him, but that she was ill. He then went on to mention that his daughter had not been able to come because she had broken out into a rash.

I said “what a shame”, and as we disembarked, climbing down the ladder onto the tarmac, I offered to pray. He readily agreed and so we stood at the base of the stairs of the plane and I introduced myself, explaining I was a Christian, and he introduced himself back saying he was a Christian too!  We laughed, I took his hand, and I invited the Holy Spirit to come.  We prayed for his daughter to be healed, for her histamine levels to come back into normal range and for her immune system to tolerate the penicillin (he had said it was an allergic reaction to penicillin). I then felt I “heard” the word “reunification” or “reunion” or something along those lines and I mentioned it to him, explaining that it made no sense to me, but asking if it did to him.

He looked at me and said “that does mean something to me … My wife and I are separated …” and as we walked into the terminal together he explained that he was separated, that was visiting family for four days and that he and his wife had separated, he felt, due to the over protectiveness she had with their two children, the fear that something might happen … He continued saying that she had been pregnant previous to him meeting her and that child had died … She had a very understandable fear that her children may also die … and as I heard the story my heart went out to them as a couple and to her as a woman, or girl, who had got pregnant young, had a child out of wedlock who had suffered the sadness and grief of having that child die … only to have two more with a husband, but to be filled with a constant fear for her children’s safety ..

As we walked in, his parents greeted him and he introduced me to them, explaining that I had prayed for him, that I was a Christian too, here for a conference. They asked me what conference I was attending… I told them and they said … “Oh how funny our grand-daughter is the worship leader there … Make sure you say hello to her …”!
I looked at S (the gentleman I had prayed for) and said “were you planning to come along?”

He said “no”, he hadn’t planned to but he then responded that he just may, since it was Friday night Saturday day and Saturday night…

I then quickly switched the conversation back to his wife.  I felt an urgency to pray for her for as he had spoken about his wife, I had felt my compassion stir, and I knew I needed to pray.

I mentioned this and he agreed, and so we stood, and prayed for his wife.  I prayed as I felt led, for her to feel the Fathers heart, for her to be released from all fear, for His love to surround her, and for her to be released from the condemnation she had felt as an unmarried mother.  I prayed that she would know the love of God in a tangible way, to know that she was not to blame for the death of her child, that she was free of judgement, and for her to feel the peace of God in a tangible way, for her to know beyond any doubt that it was safe to releases her children into His care. I then prayed for their marriage, for unity and for reunification…

S stood and agreed with me.  He looked tangibly moved, and as I prayed I knew that his wife was the main reason for me to stop to pray. I had felt to pray about the daughter, but the compassion had come and the heavy tangible sense of the anointing had swept around us as I had prayed for his wife…I felt that, yes, I was meant to pray for the daughter, the allergic reaction was not God’s will, however, it was a means to an end, where God could then show His love to the father, and release His heart of reunification and healing for the marriage and for the mother…

God had set me up again!  God had set S up too!  And, the extraordinary “coincidence” of his niece being the worship leader at the conference that I was going to, that the father was free to come to the conference if he so chose because he was there on his own, indicated to him, I believe, that God cared, that God had it in hand, that God “saw” him, and with that, God was drawing S to Himself, and through him, his family would be drawn too, just because…

God is so very, very Good!

Her hair was to be His Glory…God is Good!

Categories 1 Cor 11:15, As you go, coincidence, God's sense of fun, hair, Stopping for the one14 Comments on Her hair was to be His Glory…God is Good!

God has a sense of humour … and yet He is intensely serious, intentional and certainly knows how to maximise on available time …

Sometime before this day I had bought an item for my daughter from the same store that the following story took place (see link: And Peace flooded her soul).

At the time I had felt we were to buy it, but I also felt that we were not going to keep it … so, at the time, the purchase did not really make any sense to me … ahhh … me and my wisdom J

In any case, on this particular day in March 2013 I had a coffee catch up with someone.  The timing was tight with needing to leave for school pick up.  Regardless, I sensed that I was to bring the item in question, a poncho, with me … thinking that perhaps I would be able to return it while at this other major shopping complex.  I wondered why, given the tight time frame, and given that I did not know where the store was in this huge shopping centre, but thought “why not” it was no great bother to take the bag with me, and “who knows” I thought “the store just may be close by …” …

I brought the item I needed to return and met my friend, and as we headed down the escalators to the coffee shop, I told her the story of the return and, to my surprise and delight, laughing at the irony, I pointed out to her as the store came in view, that the very store, where I needed to head to, was opposite our coffee spot, up the mall about three stores … God was funny!

I had my catch up and, after paying the bill, praying for and prophesying over the guy that served us (I felt the swirl of the Holy Spirit as he served us earlier, which told me I needed to pray for him), I said goodbye to my friend, saying to her wouldn’t it be funny if there was a God appointment there, while thinking “surely not” … and I headed over to the store to return the item.

As I stood at the counter, I looked at the hair of the girl who was serving me.  I was inextricably drawn to her hair.  I was impressed with its lustre and its golden beauty.  I sensed there was something in that, and noting that I had a desire to pray for her, I commented on how beautiful her hair was, how amazing it was, and, as she responded I then knew why I had the impression that I was to pray …

The girl looked at me and said it was amazing hair because it was fake, not hers, but a wig. 

Greatly taken aback (I had not seen that one coming!), I gently asked her what was wrong … fearing chemo, cancer … she was dying… my mind raced… the fear and the mocking started in my mind before she could even respond … and yet I went on to explain that I was a Christian and had felt a strong desire to offer to pray for her, and that I had not known why, but that perhaps this was why …

She instantly teared up , and said that she was suffering from alopecia, which had caused her total hair loss … she was completely bald.  She gave me permission to pray, saying how overwhelmed she felt, how loved and how emotional … and she visibly struggled to control the wave of emotions that beset her …

I gently said it was normal to feel teary when the Holy Spirit came, and I explained that God was present, He loved her and wanted her healed, why else would I offer to pray?  I went on to explain that what she was responding to was His Presence, His Holy Spirit … that He was with us tangibly … and He was … I could feel Him all around …

I took her hand.  I introduced myself and she told me that her name was F, and so I prayed … releasing healing, blessing favour, and a verse that a woman’s hair is her glory came to mind (1 Cor 11:15) and knowing it was for her I prayed it declaring that her hair would be her glory and it’s return would be to His Glory …

I sensed to bless her and call forth favour, and so I released the blessing of the Father, gently kissed her forehead as I held her head in my hands … with her tears gently dropping down her cheeks …

As I finished, a girl walked out of a back room, behind the counter, and said smiling … “Hello B” …

I’m sure I looked shocked!  I certainly felt shock!

She was from the local clothing store I usually shopped at, and was the person from the story “And Peace flooded her soul … God is good! (see link here: story).

The irony was too great to fathom …

Surprised, I said “what are you doing here? God is soooo funny …fancy you being here, with me praying for F …” and I turned to F and explained that I had prayed for this other girl before Christmas …

I laughed at the coincidence, the ridiculous level of connectivity that was going on … God’s hand print was so obviously over the situation, it was beyond ridiculous … it was nearly implausible … and I had thought that God was just making the return of the item easy …

I asked her how she was and she said she was doing so much better than the last time I had seen her.  At that particular moment I could not recall what I had prayed for her, but I did recall how she had followed me around in the store when I had prayed for her … exclaiming that she had “felt that!”

I said good-bye to F, wishing her well and as I walked out from the store I looked at the other girl, sensing her hunger, and took her hand.  She was now standing by the shop door. As I did I felt to just release the presence of God.  I could feel sense, even feel her draw on the anointing … her hunger for God was apparent as it had been that day before Christmas …

I asked God what to do, pray and sensed just to bless her, to release a double portion blessing … so I did … her feeling it … Him coming in waves upon her …

Once He said “enough” … I left …

Gods timing is impeccable.

I got to school pick up in perfect time … having caught up with someone important, and having prayed and blessed three people as I went …

His humour – delightful!

He had reminded me of the purchase to return.  I had bought the piece knowing he wanted me to buy it, but sensing that my daughter would not be keeping it … and now I knew why … it was a set up to touch the girl with the golden hair and to feed a girl who had been touched once before …

I found the coincidence of it all so ridiculous it was funny!

The possibility of the girl from the past being there when I offered to pray, and walking out just as I started to pray … the possibility of me being at that shopping centre, and the location of the shop being so close that I could return the product with minimal fuss … it was ridiculous … implausible …

Implausible? … yes … Impossible? … No … not for God …

He had set me up!

God is amazing; God is funny; and yet at the same time He is intensely serious about touching people when they need Him … and while it may have made me smile, and I enjoyed the joke with Him, feeling, sensing the Holy Spirit’s delight as I walked back through the shopping centre to my car, I was also acutely aware of His passion and heart for the people around me … I was acutely aware of girl’s suffering that needed a kiss from God, a touch of His love, a touch of concern … I was acutely aware of His love for the one before me … for that was the one I could impact, then, at that moment in time … that one …

He makes our walk fun … if we will just listen and walk and obey … but what He is doing through us is not a joke, but alters the lives and destinies of those we have the courage to stop for as we go … and if we will stop for the one as we go we will, together, as a body, change the face of the world because …

God is Good!