There are no COINCIDENCES in the Kingdom of God...... only GOD INCIDENTS

“ ‘The children are dressed and ready for school, but there is no food for them to eat,’ the housemother of the orphanage informed George Meuller. George asked her to take the 300 children into the dining room and have them sit at the tables. He thanked God for the food and waited. George knew God would provide food for the children as He always did. Within minutes a baker knocked at the door. ‘Mr Mueller,’ he said, ‘last night I could not sleep. Somehow, I knew that you would need bread this morning. I got up and baked three batches for you. I will bring it in.’ Soon there was another knock at the door. It was the milkman. His cart had broken down in front of the orphanage. The milk would spoil by the time the wheel was fixed. He asked George if he could use some free milk. George smiled as the milkman brought in ten large cans of milk. It was just enough for the 300 thirsty children.”      From Christianity.com

A coincidence is the occurrence of events that happen at the same time by accident but seem to have some connection. It is possible that the Bible may be the book that contains more examples of coincidences than any other book ever written. Or could it be that there is a deeper reason why such experiences often occur in the Bible? And is there something we need to learn from those who have gone before us if we are going to fulfill the calling that God has for our lives?

John Maxwell writes, “It’s easy to think that a person being in the right place at the right time was a coincidence. But when a leader is following God, nothing is coincidental.” He described the life of Queen Esther as being “in the right place with the right people in the right position with the right plan.”

Queen Esther’s uncle Mordecai was led to suggest that what was happening to her was more than a coincidence. “Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this.” Esther 4:14 In retrospect it isn’t hard to realise that Esther was indeed living out God’s sovereign purposes for her life having gone from an orphaned commoner, living in the land of her captivity, to the highest position in the land for a woman. She lived to prove that there are no coincidences in the kingdom of God.

Joseph was another example of how there are no coincidences in the kingdom of God. He was sold into slavery by his jealous brothers and taken to Egypt where he was wrongfully placed in prison. Through a series of events, Pharoah ultimately placed Joseph in charge of the whole land of Egypt because he declared “there is no one so discerning and wise as you.” Genesis 41:39 In an amazing reunion with his terrified brothers, Joseph comforts them with words of perspective; “I am your brother Joseph, THE ONE YOU SOLD into Egypt! And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because IT WAS TO SAVE LIVES THAT GOD SENT ME AHEAD OF YOU. For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will be no ploughing or reaping. BUT GOD SENT ME AHEAD OF YOU to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So then, IT WAS NOT YOU WHO SENT ME HERE, BUT GOD. He made me father to Pharoah, lord of his entire household and ruler of all Egypt. Now hurry back to my father and say to him, ‘This is what your son, Joseph says. GOD HAS MADE ME LORD OF ALL EGYPT. Come down to me; don’t delay.’” Genesis 45:4-9  How interesting that Joseph could say that even though his brothers sold him into Egypt, it was God who sent him. It is appropriate to say that when a leader is in the right place at the right time, nothing that happens is a coincidence, rather it is a God Incident.

As Sue and I have reflected on our lives we have become more aware of God’s guiding hand on our lives and specific God Incidents that have happened to us have been defining moments. Sometimes it has been in retrospect that we see more clearly how God has led us. The following are a few of our God  Incidents.

GOD  INCIDENT 1

Following our marriage in 1979, as Sue and I flew to our honeymoon location we found ourselves seated on the plane next to the pastor of a large Baptist church. His name was Rowland Croucher. Four months later, to our surprise, Rowland tracked us down and called us with the following request; “Rod, I have heard about you, and I am asking you to consider coming to live in Melbourne and joining my pastoral team to lead our youth and young adults ministry.” Our initial reaction was to say “no”, we had never considered such a possibility. But slowly we came to realise that God had opened a door for our future lives, and we burnt all our bridges and travelled to Melbourne to take this dramatic change in direction for our lives. The encounter with Rowland on our honeymoon plane flight radically changed the future course of our lives forever. It was the beginning of a whole new life that was going to open doors to a world we could never have imagined.

GOD  INCIDENT 2

Nine years later, I felt encouraged to attend a seminar where the speaker was Dr Roberta Hestenes, a faculty member from Fuller Theological Seminary in America. I was strangely stirred by her teaching, so much so that I approached her at the luncheon break and asked if I could talk with her. I had been considering the need to undertake some formal studies and was prompted to talk to Dr Hestenes about studying at Fuller Seminary. She was most helpful and at the end of our conversation she looked at me and with conviction said, “Rod, I believe God would want you to study at Fuller Seminary.” Her words so convicted me that on my return home I met with Sue and shared with her the details of my discussion with Dr Hestenes. Before we went to sleep that night, we shared a strong conviction that the Lord was leading us and our two young daughters to live in America for 20 months in order that I might complete study in Fuller’s Masters of Missiology program. My meeting with Dr Hestenes was no coincidence, it proved to be a God Incident

GOD INCIDENT 3

Life in America on leave without pay for nearly 2 years required us to take a step of faith and trust that God would indeed meet all of our needs, and He did in so many ways. After being in America for a year, we faced two challenges which led us to experience two God Incidents. First of all, our finances were running low and we made it a priority one particular weekend to pray that the Lord would provide us with extra finances. On the following day the pastor of our home church in Australia called to inform us that since we had been away for 12 months, a special offering was collected in the Sunday service to forward to us to meet our financial needs. This offering covered our needs for the remainder of our time in America. Second, we had been renting a fully furnished home for 12 months and we now needed to vacate this property and relocate to another place of accommodation, as the term of our rental agreement had expired. We were at a loss to know what to do. With only a few days remaining, our next-door neighbour suddenly informed us that he had been unsuccessful in trying to sell his home. He then asked if we knew of a family who were looking for a home to rent, and if so, to arrange for them to contact him. We told him that he need look no further and within a few days we had moved next door to secure accommodation for the remainder of our time in America in a fully furnished home. As John Maxwell said, “When a leader is following God, nothing is coincidental.”

GOD INCIDENT 4

Whilst at Fuller Seminary, I was particularly eager to enrol in the leadership classes of Dr Robert Clinton. I was not disappointed. It was a rich experience to join with other leaders from a number of nations to be taught by such a gifted leader. One of the special contacts that I was privileged to make was with Doug Birdsall, an American missionary to Japan. We spent valuable time together and even contested the “Australian American Cup” on a nearby golf course. It was quite some years after I had returned to Australia that I had a surprise call from Doug. He spoke to me about a leadership training ministry he was forming to equip leaders in many of the countries in Asia. He asked if I could meet with him and a few other key leaders in Thailand to plan the ministry that he had called Asian Access. This was an amazing open door that fitted my giftings and passion and even though I was busy, I had a deep conviction that this was a timely prompt from God. Doug spoke of the memories that lingered with him of the times we shared in the leadership discussions in Dr Clinton’s classes. In the following years I was released by my church to teach weeklong leadership seminars in 8 Asian countries to key leaders. Ultimately, I was released by my church to serve in leadership training seminars for 50% of my time. Leaders in a number of these countries would make great sacrifices to attend these seminars and return to very difficult situations to grow leaders and plant churches to advance the kingdom of God. I was indeed privileged to be part of this ministry and will be forever thankful for the contact with Doug Birdsall that made this possible. No way could it have been a coincidence that we met in Dr Clinton’s leadership classes. Yet again, this was a God Incident in the unfolding plans that God had purposed for my life.

GOD INCIDENT 5

Our plan in coming to Fuller Seminary included the opportunity for Sue to undertake study as well. However, this did not eventuate due to the fact that it became necessary for Sue to homeschool our two daughters. However, a door opened for Sue to attend a weekly student wives Bible study group that was led by Mrs Kathleen Hart, the wife of Dr Arch Hart, Dean of the Fuller Seminary School of Psychology. And it wasn’t long before Kathleen recognised Sue’s presence in the group and appointed Sue to become her assistant leader. More than that, she became a mentor to Sue and looked for opportunities to take Sue with her when she attended key conferences. And in Kathleeen’s occasional absence, Sue took over leadership of this wonderful multi-national group. Kathleen Hart opened an unexpected world of influence for Sue that had a profound and timely impact on her. Sometimes God Incidents are the result of the closing of a door we had planned, leading to another door opening that God had planned.

GOD INCIDENT 6

One of the most stirring classes I attended at Fuller Seminary was when an Argentinian leader by the name of Dr Ed Silvoso was invited to speak on the revival that was taking place in Argentina. Following the class, I felt prompted to meet Dr Silvoso and found that my best opportunity was to drive to the hotel where he was staying in Los Angeles and seek out a meeting with him. Never did I expect what was to follow. I was able to meet with Dr Silvoso and in that brief conversation it was agreed that I would travel to Argentina for two weeks to observe the revival that was taking place in that country.

Thanks to a generous gift from some friends, four weeks later I flew to Argentina to be met by Victor Lorenzo, a leader in the revival. Victor had arranged an itinerary for me that would take me to some of the towns that had been deeply touched by the revival. I even had the privilege of preaching in the church in La Plata where the revival began. On my return to America, I wrote a 50 page report on the revival which was credited toward my Masters Degree and placed in the Fuller Seminary library. I was deeply impacted by this God Incident in my life, so much so that after returning to life in Australia, I was prompted to invite Dr Silvoso and his family to come to Australia to tour three states to share about the revival in Argentina and sow seeds of a revival prayer movement in these states. Following his time in my home state of South Australia, the ensuing momentum resulted in the birth of Pray South Australia, a prayer movement that spread across our state. In the following years, our contact with Dr Silvoso grew and resulted in a growing number of Australian leaders attending the annual revival conference conducted in Argentina. I had the privilege of being invited to speak on occasions at this conference. I never could have imagined that my life would be so profoundly impacted by attending a class on church growth in Fuller Seminary so many years ago. But God Incidents often happen in the most unexpected places at the most unexpected times with the most unexpected results.

SUMMARY

God Incidents can be unexpected and require us to “seize the moment”, a phrase which comes from the Latin “carpe diem” coined by the Roman poet, Horace in 23BC. Queen Esther’s life was a classic example of these words, having been in the right place with the right people in the right position with the right plan. Another God Incident that has impacted me occurred when Abraham, in his old age, commissioned his senior servant to go to the country of his relatives to find a wife for his son Isaac. When his servant came to a well near a town called Nahar, he prayed for success as women of the town came out to draw water from the well. Before he had finished praying, Rebekkah, the grand daughter of Abraham’s brother appeared and invited Abraham’s servant home to spend the night at her father’s house. During the conversation that followed, Abraham’s servant was led to say, “Blessed be the Lord God of my master Abraham, who has not left destitute my master of his mercy and truth. I BEING IN THE WAY, THE LORD HAS LED ME to the house of my master’s brother.” Genesis 24:27 “Being in the way the Lord led me” is a helpful definition of a God Incident.

I have found it helpful to define God Incidents as “following the prompts of the Holy Spirit and walking by faith.”  Recently I read of a woman who was asked why she had made rapid progress in her understanding of the Lord. She responded, “Mind the checks.” This to me is another way of following the prompts. The article continued, “The reason many of us do not know and understand God better is that we do not heed His gentle ‘checks’. Allow Him to develop all the plans of your heart and mind, and them let Him accomplish them. Do not possess any wisdom of your own, for often His performance will appear to contradict the plan He gave you.”

GOD INCIDENT LESSONS I HAVE LEARNED as I have followed the prompts and walked by faith.

1. God has promised to lead us. “The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives.” Psalm 38:23

2. God requires us to take steps of faith as He leads us a step at a time. God told Abraham, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.”  Genesis 12:1 “Don’t ask for the whole way, ask for the next step.” E. Stanley Jones

3. God Incidents are not always logical. Philip had an amazing ministry preaching in a city in Samaria which brought great joy to the city. In the midst of this time of revival, an angel of the Lord told him to leave the city and travel down a desert road. It wasn’t a very logical thing to do under the circumstances. However, on the desert road Philip met a lone high ranking Ethiopian and told him the good news of Jesus and baptised him.  And so the great commission would extend to a new nation because of this God Incident.

4. God Incidents will cause us to experience open doors and closed doors. “What He opens, no one can shut and what He shuts no one can open…..I have placed before you an open door.” Revelation 3:7-8

5. To embrace God Incidents requires us to put our trust in God alone. There will be times when God will test us before He entrusts us. Solomon’s words of wisdom exhort us to “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not to your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him and He will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5-6 “To everyone entrusted with spiritual authority, searching tests are bound to come.” J. Oswald Sanders

6. To embrace God Incidents requires us to maintain an expectant attitude, even in the most difficult of circumstances. Paul could even testify that it was no coincidence that his time in jail happened to advance the gospel. Even jail for him was a God Incident. “Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually served to advance the gospel. As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. And because of my chains, most of the brothers and sisters have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear.” Philippians 1:12-14

7. To embrace a life of God Incidents requires us to be aware of God’s timing. We need to not only do the right thing but also do it at the right time. It is important to see where and when God is at work and to be ready to step out and seize the moment when the opportunities arise.

It is a wonderful thing to wake up each morning and pray for the Holy Spirit to fill us afresh knowing that as we follow the prompts and walk by faith we will be able to say as Jesus said, “My Father is always at His work to this very day and I too am working….For the Father loves the Son and shows Him all He does; Yes, and will show Him even greater works than these.” John 5 16, 20

And don’t forget, when a person is following God, nothing is coincidental.