Many years ago, my wife, Debi called an acquaintance who sold real estate. We were considering putting our home on the market and thought this gal, who came highly recommended by another friend, would be a great person for us to work with. As it turned out we did hire her and later she shared with my wife that we were GODcidences in her life. She went on to explain that she did not believe in coincidences but because she had trusted Jesus Christ as her Savior, she believed that He orchestrated every happening in her life for His glory and her good. Even in the short time we worked with her, God provided some amazing examples of GODcidences to us through the sale of that home. Since that time I have become a big time believer in GODcidendces. Not only have the GODcidences in my life been there to bless and guide me, but God often has a bigger plan for me to love and minister to others through that GODcidence – His purpose in these unexpected encounters and happenings many times actually turned out to be more significant for others than for myself. These are definitely Divine Appointments. I have come to realize that these God-directed happenings and opportunities are a part of God’s plan for all of us who serve God and desire to be obedient to Him in His Kingdom work.

Jesus modeled this perfectly for us as He walked on this earth. His one desire was to obey and follow the will of His Father as He loved and helped people. In fact, it was His very sustenance in life. Matthew 4:34 (NLT) says, "My nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing His work.” Jesus intentionally put Himself in the right place at the right time in order to have Divine Appointments. A few examples are: the woman at the well, Zacchaeus in the tree, and the woman who touched the hem of His garment. While we want to be intentional about loving and serving others as Jesus did, the truth is that much of the time we just go about our daily business without thinking of how to love and serve those we come into contact with. Thankfully, God knows our humanness and lovingly “sets up” happenings to get our attention and point us in the direction of a Divine Appointment. 

While I have experienced many GODcidences in my life that led to amazing Divine Appointments, there is one that stands out above them all. It all began the afternoon I received a call from my mom telling me that my dad had been diagnosed with bone cancer and was going to be hospitalized. I decided to fly home to be with both of them during this difficult time. My dad had been a wonderful and loving father. He was committed and faithful to his family in every way possible. However, dad did not have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. I thought of all of the conversations we had over the years and all of the prayers I had prayed for him to come to know Jesus and His mercy, grace, and love. As I flew, these thoughts turned into prayers for my dad and for his healing from this cancer, but most importantly for his spiritual healing. My prayers turned to praying for the doctors, nurses, and others who would be caring for him in the hospital as he went through this devastating illness.  

Once I arrived at the hospital it was easy to see that God was providing answers to some of my prayers through the wonderful, attentive, and loving care dad was receiving from the hospital staff. I became quick friends with many who were caring for dad. Being a Christ-centered hospital, the nurses and staff often had times of devotionals together. One of the nurses asked me if I would share at one of those devotion times. I gladly did and was thankful for the opportunity to share my faith and God’s love with these precious caregivers. I did ask them to pray not only for my dad’s healing from the cancer but to also pray for His salvation. Shortly after that time of sharing, one of my dad’s nurses told me there was a mother and son that had heard about my devotional and my request for prayer for dad. This nurse went on to tell me the mother and son wanted to come to dad’s room to talk with me. I agreed and in a short time the mother and son arrived. She walked into the room and introduced herself, and then motioned to her son who was in a wheelchair and had been hanging back just outside the door to come in and join us. She then introduced me to her 10-year-old son who had Downs Syndrome.

She went on to tell me that her son was very concerned about my dad and wanted to come and pray for him…for him to certainly get well but more importantly he wanted to pray that my dad would come to know Jesus. I thanked the little boy for wanting to pray for my dad as he wheeled his chair next to dad’s bedside. He put his hand on dad’s arm and began to pray in words and utterances my dad or I had never heard. A number of minutes passed as he prayed and then he completed his prayer and he and his mom left dad’s room. I followed them out of the room to say thank you for taking the time to come and pray for my dad. When I returned into the room, my dad did not say anything to me but it was evident that both of us had been deeply touched by this young boy and his prayer.

The next few days were rough for dad and because of the morphine administered to him for pain, he was not very alert. I spent every minute in the hospital room with him, even sleeping there. I awoke one morning as my mom entered the room. Dad was also awake and alert. He motioned for me to come to him. As I leaned over him, he whispered into my ear, “I want to ask Jesus into my heart. Without a doubt I believe that God provided a GODcidence involving me in an opportunity to speak about His love and faithfulness to a few nurses, who then told others, one of them being a mother and little 10-year-old boy with Down Syndrome who then came to pray for my dad at just the right moment and time. You see, God had a Divine Appointment for my dad and He was using others through a unique set of circumstances to ensure that appointment would happen. I never saw that mother and son again, but I sure look forward to seeing them in heaven along with my dad…and thanking them!

What a privilege it is to respond to GODcidences and see God turn them into Divine Appointments that are a part of His plan. The unexpected and the gift of loving and serving can happen anywhere and at any time. It may occur at work, church, school, the grocery store, gas station, on the basketball court, or in a hospital room - anywhere God leads you and asks, “Are you available to share me?”  Now here is the make or break big question for each of us to consider. We all will have a choice to make in an instant…Am I available to Him or are my agenda and my desires going to trump this GODcidence and Divine Appointment? Or…will I say yes, here I am, send me? The Holy Spirit will then use you to bring encouragement, kindness, and maybe even the gift of being introduced to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. I would love to hear about a GODcidence in your life that led to a Divine Appointment.

Onward & Upward,