By Chris WittsMonday 5 Jun 2017Morning Devotions with Chris WittsFaithReading Time: 4 minutes
There are many catchphrases out there I hear from time to time. And one I’ve heard several times is: It’s a God thing. Usually it comes from a Christian friend who is talking to me about something. And out comes this phrase, “It’s a God thing”. What is this person really talking about? Now, it’s not “It’s a good thing” but they are saying, “It’s a God thing”.
It’s quite amazing really that God’s providence moves in the lives of ordinary people in ways we sometimes can’t understand. I believe it’s happening all the time to many people, even when they don’t realise it. I’ve heard some say, “It must be fate”. No, I don’t believe that. It is astonishing how God works in the lives of people like you and me. Trouble is we don’t always hear about it.
Sceptics will say miracles are fairy tales told by desperate people. But God is amazing and works every day in our lives. Our problem is we are not alert enough to sense his presence. Just because they’re not special or unique things, that does not mean God is not working. We tend to hear of the spectacular events, and that’s OK. God is at work all the time and in every way in your life and mine. But sometimes God has to do something unusual to get our attention. We don’t look up. We’re not waiting for him because we are too focused on the matters at hand—our working or family life.
God Moments
You know those moments where a flock of birds stops you in your tracks, or a kind word from a friend makes your day, or when a baby smiles at you from across a restaurant? Those are God moments. They’re encounters with the divine and they point us to a deeper reality: that God wishes to have a relationship with you. Don’t dismiss them as nothing.
But what happens when things don’t go our way? Are we still prepared to say that what happens ‘is a God thing’? That’s not so easy. Life can become difficult, and our plans don’t go our way. Sometimes it’s hard to see where God is in the difficult times. It’s then when we remember the truth of Romans 8:28: “…God is able to orchestrate everything to work toward something good and beautiful when we love Him and accept His invitation to live according to His plan” (The Voice). That is a wonderful promise from God’s Word. The amazing fact is that God’s goodness and guidance is around us each day—in ways we will never know here on earth anyway. But he is in control, and he will move as he wishes.
A woman from Oregon in the US, Brenda Jacobson, went with her son to London, because he was starting a new academic career at university. She was excited, as she had never been to London before. With her son Blair she visited the tourist places, and one day they walked to Hyde Park. It was a nice sunny day, and Blair wanted to lie down and read a book. Off he went and left his mother on her own. She found a park bench and lay down to have a sleep. Not long after that, she had a sudden impulse to open her eyes. It was like an inner voice urging her. She did, and spotted a man walking fast towards her. He had a three-foot rope which he held tight with both hands.
The inner voice said, “Get up and walk quickly down the hill”. She noticed the park bench was right near a large tree with thick grass. Brenda walked briskly away, and the man disappeared behind her. Then she went back to the hotel. A few weeks later Brenda returned to Oregon, forgetting about the unsavoury incident. A day later, a friend rang and asked, “What happened when you were in London?” Surprised, because she hadn’t told anyone, she heard her friend say quite calmly, “Last Wednesday the Lord woke me up to pray for you because you were about to be murdered”. Brenda did the calculations. And her friend had woken up at exactly the same time she was threatened at Hyde Park. God had indeed protected Brenda in a dramatic God moment. He answered the prayer of her friend many miles away.
Proverbs 3:6 has a promise: “In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your path”. Acknowledge God—that means when you get up in the morning, acknowledge God: “Good morning Lord, I love you today, I wouldn’t be alive without your goodness.”