Is it just coincidence or is God at work in my life?

I opened my facebook page this morning and had a friend suggestion from someone I know.  I haven't seen this person in a long time, and in another place, another time, she and I could have been close.  She, out of everyone I know, was the one person who cautioned me about getting married again.  Why she knew, I don't know.  At the time, I passed it off as nothing.  We all have people we meet and take an instant dislike to, and that was the case with her and the wife.

I ignored the request.  Here is the reason why:

I stepped outside to have a cigarette.  When I came back in and opened my facebook page, there was a prayer from the prayer request page on my page.  It was a prayer to God to help us fight temptations in our lives and to help us remember the life on earth prepares us for a place in God's kingdom.  It was what I needed to hear at the exact moment I needed to hear it.

Not that the purpose of the friend request was an implication of anything.  It was sent by a mutual friend of ours, and I don't want to seem like I'm reading anything into something that's not there.  I'm not.  I'm just not to the point in my life where renewing that particular friendship would be a good idea for me.  Right now, there are other things that have priority.  The funny thing is that I heard from my friend yesterday, a dear lady who I've known for years and who is just a wheelbarrow full of fun to be around, and the first thought that popped into my head was the person who she sent the friend suggestion for the next day.

Random things happen like this to me all the time .  The wife and I are talking about some things, to hopefully resolve some things.  She asked me some questions instead of being angry with me.  Instead of reacting to those questions immediately, an inner voice told me to wait and think about what I should say.  I listened.  Later on that evening, I received an e-mail from divorcecare.org (a Christian divorce support group) that held one answer to a question she asked me.  I sent it to her via the way we communicate these days.  The timing of that particular e-mail couldn't have been more perfect if I'd planned it myself. Random?  Maybe.  But I choose to believe that it's part of God working in my life.

This is how God works in my life these days.  Lots of random things happen.  I'd be foolish to think that something was directed exactly toward me, but it seems that the message I hear is the one I need to hear, just at the right time.  I have to be in the place I am when I see or hear what I need to, and sometimes some very random things happen that cause that.

I've made it to work twice in the last month without my toolbox keys.  Both times, I had to come home and get them.  One time, I heard a very inspiring message from a pastor on the radio that was just the right message at just the right time.  I had to be where I was to hear the message I heard.  The second time was just last Monday and on the way home to get my keys, Jesus touched my heart.  That's an experience I will never forget, and someday soon I'll share that experience with you.

Random, too, is something that happened to my mother-in-law.  I asked her to find a phone number for me.  She couldn't find it right then.  Later on in the evening, this phone number appeared on her phone not once, but three times.  Her phone didn't quite ring, it just made enough of a noise to get her attention. She didn't recognize the number and after the third time, she called it to find out who it was.  It turned out to be the person whose number I asked her for.  He didn't call my mother-in-law.  His phone was in his pocket.  I needed this number for someone else, and I believe God found a way to make sure I got it.

This is God working in my life.   How do I know? I listen to this quiet inner voice and I check what I think I'm hearing or seeing that pertains to me by looking up the matter in my Bible.  I have faith that I'm trying to follow God's path for me and the patience to see where that path will lead.  Everyday, though, I take another step on that path, instead of running foolishly down it.  Patience has been hard for me to learn, but I'm finding that with patience comes the opportunity to gain knowledge and wisdom.

I told someone last night, I have learned more in the last eight months than I have in the last twenty years. Everyday is exciting for me because it seems that every day I learn something new.  Today was a good day for knowledge, for building trust in others, and for having faith and hope for a better tomorrow.

There are so many reasons to be bitter, angry, even upset.  Yet I find myself hopeful, happy, full of love for others, and a peace that I can't find the words to describe.  This is God at work in my life.  I hope by sharing my story today, you can look at your life and see the small miracles God brings to us every day if we give our lives to Him, to do His will, and love Him and Jesus with all our hears.

Thank you for reading my blog today.  And may the love of Jesus Christ be with you, now, and always!

Coop