It's No Coincidence

 

co·in·ci·dence

[kəʊˈɪn(t)sɪd(ə)n(t)s]

noun

coincidence (noun)

coincidences (plural noun)

co-incidence (noun)

co-incidences (plural noun)

1.     a remarkable concurrence of events or circumstances without apparent causal connection:

 

 

I had to laugh earlier this morning as I read the portion of the Christmas Story from Luke chapter 2, when Mary and Joseph brought the baby Jesus to the temple in order to present Him to the Lord and offer a sacrifice as prescribed by the Law.  As they entered into the temple courtyard an older man approached them and Luke writes:

“Moved by the Spirit, Simeon went into the temple courtyard. Mary and Joseph were bringing the child Jesus into the courtyard at the same time. They brought Him so that they could do for Him what Moses’ Teachings required.  Then Simeon took the child in his arms and praised God…”

The picture of Simeon walking up to the couple and taking the child in his arms set off a flurry of memories of when my wife and I initially walked into the Baptist church we attended, proudly carrying our week old, first-born child Josh.  You have to understand here, that Piper had been raised in that church and was well known and respected by just about everyone.  When I started attending the church with her as a senior in high school, it became very evident to me that Piper was “the little darling” of the church.  It was like she was good friends with everyone in the congregation… be they old or young!

Then when we were married, we almost immediately were asked to take over the youth ministry and became very visible to the congregation in that position.  It was like we lived the first five years of our marriage progressively in front of them.  Therefore, when we walked in on that Sunday morning, we were seen as family by just about everyone… and you guessed it… everyone seemed to think that our baby was their baby and could hold him whenever and as long as they wanted!

But… even though they felt like they knew and loved us…They had not considered (nor yet met) wise, sensitive to the Spirit, and very protective Mama Piper!  She was very selective as to whom she would let hold the baby (as she was with all four of our kids in their infancies) and kept a watchful eye when the child was in someone else’s arms besides her own or mine!

So… when Simeon took the baby Jesus in his arms without a recorded word from either Mary or Joseph, it was pretty clear to me, that Mary, like Piper, either sensed God’s anointing on the man, or that she was already familiar and comfortable with him.

I also laughed… or maybe it was more of a light-hearted “Ah-Ha!” when I finished that part of Jesus’ story at the temple, that also included their meeting with the Prophetess Anna who spoke about Jesus and His eventual ministry to Isreal.  What caught my attention there was that her meeting with Mary, Joseph and the baby, similarly to Simeon’s, was not a coincidence, but a divinely planned event.  After Luke gives us a little background information on Anna he wrote,

“At that moment she came up to Mary and Joseph and began to thank God. She spoke about Jesus to all who were waiting for Jerusalem to be set free.” (Luke 2:36-38 n- God’s Word ©) 

The “Ah-Ha!” slipped out of my mouth because a light went on in my brain as I recalled all the other divinely planned or orchestrated events that had also taken place previous to these at the temple.  From the very beginning of the Christmas Story from Zechariah, to Mary, to Elizabeth and to Joseph, as well as all the supporting cast, we see God’s hand as he masterfully puts people, places and various resources together in order to deliver both the message and the Messenger of His plan of salvation for mankind on this earth.

I couldn’t help but smile, as I too, have learned through many personal experiences, the ways in which God responds to our EXPECTANT faith in Him and His Word.  Like with each of the characters in the Christmas Story and then throughout history since then… a history that most definitely includes both you and me… we can repeatedly see the way that God supernaturally puts people, places and things (ie; resources) together in behalf of those of us who live our individual lives in EXPECTANT faith in Christ and His anointed Word of TRUTH!

So… When I gain revelation knowledge and personal understanding of a truth in God’s Word and then stand on that truth for a need in my life, I can stay excited about His promised results because I continually keep my heart and my mind on the EXPECTATION of God bringing together whatever people, places and/or resources that my be needed… for His Word to be manifested in the fulfillment of my need.

What do you think about that?  Is that how you walk in your daily life… I sure hope so… because for me… the WOW FACTOR of God putting things together for me…

NEVER GETS OLD!

Isn’t God Good!  I pray that you are in the midst of the very best Christmas/Holiday season in your life… so far!

So, stay EXCITED!  Stay EXPECTANT! and stay WATCHFUL! for God’s personal involvement in everything you do!

Christmas Miracles… all year long!

Well, it looks like we won’t be experiencing a white Christmas this year… although it’s definitely been cold enough to produce snow… if it were to rain!  But alas, we may have cloud cover, but them clouds have no moisture in them… which to my California temperature gauge, is a good thing!  I’m not sure if I’ll ever enjoy the snow for more than one day… for the entire winter season!

Fiver and I are slowly acclimating to our new home city and state and little things like knowing how to get to the grocery stores are finally becoming second nature to me.  I’ve been enjoying going to Kroger again like Piper and I used to do in North Carolina.  I still go to Walmart on occasion, but Kroger is closer and it reminds me of the Raley’s that we frequented back home in Santa Rosa.

Apartment living has taken some adjusting to… but it is nice to not have to think about repairs, leaking roofs and mowing lawns… even though I’ve always enjoyed the outdoor tasks.  Fiver and I have developed a daily walk schedule and are getting to know the various areas of the large and nicely landscaped apartment homes, complete with additional amenities like a workout room, swimming pool, a trash valet service and park-like picnic areas with gas BBQ’s, tables and mood lighting strategically placed throughout the gated community.

And now that we are in the midst of the Christmas season, there are many balconies and front porches (on the ground level apartments) that, like mine on the third floor, are adorned with holiday lights, festive decorated and lit trees, garland and some with inflatable seasonal Ho! Ho! Ho! Characters!

And speaking of Christmas… I couldn’t help but to notice as I have been revisiting and studying the Biblical Christmas story found in Luke chapters one and two, that our heavenly Father sure had MIRACLES on His mind as He sent His messenger angel Gabriel to the earth in order to introduce the world to His Good News plan of salvation.

It would seem that God desired to present the Gospel message and it’s coming Messenger… with the expectation of CREATIVE MIRACLES and then… when THE Messenger left to return to His rightful position in heaven, sitting at the right hand of God… some 33 years later… He specifically left the message of Good News in the hands of us Believers… with the expectation of CREATIVE MIRACLES coming through the words of THE Messenger that we would speak to the people around us in our individual lives, incorporating our families, neighborhoods, jobs, schools, the stores we frequent and anywhere else our daily adventures would lead us!

Following her life-changing, CREATIVE MIRACLE encounter with the words of God that the angel spoke, Mary visited her cousin Elizabeth, who had previously received another life-changing CREATIVE MIRACLE with words of God that the angel had spoken to her.  As soon as she entered into her cousin’s home, Elizabeth, under the anointing of the Holy Spirit that had filled her,

“said in a loud voice, “You are the most blessed of all women, and blessed is the child that you will have… And blessed is she that BELIEVED for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord.”  (God’s Word © - KJV)

When you look at their experiences through the eyes of God’s plan for CREATIVE MIRACLES to be attached to His Word, it is easy to see how both Mary and Elizabeth were the predecessors to Jesus’ Great Commission as recorded at the end of Matthew 28 and Mark 16… and summarized in Mark 16:20 where Mark… from his first-hand experience, wrote what he saw back then and prophesized over the ever-growing church saying,

“And they went forth, and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them, and confirming the Word with signs following. Amen.” (KJV)

Like Elizabeth spoke over Mary, Jesus made it clear (and confirmed by Mark in the verse above) that God’s CREATIVE MIRACLES (or signs) would “follow them that believe.” (Mark 16:17 -KJV) But please note that when Jesus spoke of “them that BELIEVE”, He was not just talking about any believer… but a believer that is actively BELIEVING in FAITH (as per Mark 11:24 and Hebrews 11:1)

So… with the celebration of Christmas occurring in just a few days, I would encourage all of us to look anew at the Biblical story of the coming of the Lord on that first Christmas… through the understanding and power of God’s CREATIVE MIRACLES that are present in His Words that we can speak into a world that desperately needs some!

Remember that “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, and today, and forever.”  (Hebrews 13:8 – KJV) AND… if He was expectant of His CREATIVE MIRACLES changing the world back then… then, as the verse states… He is still expecting it today… and they occur when WE speak out HIS Word in Faith and expect a miracle!

Familiarity

Today’s Reading:  Isaiah 7:14 / Luke 1:26-38

 

Today’s society tends to look at the teenage years as a time to fear.  To many it is looked upon as “The Rebellious Years,” or as a time of experimentation.  It is the one phase of the child rearing years that many parents dread and pray that they have the endurance to make it through with their kids.  As one who has had the honor of working closely with and ministering to youth in the local church throughout my life, as well as actively participating in the upbringing of our own four kids, I look at those experiencing life as a 12- to 18-year-old with a different set of glasses!

I see these youth as older kids who suddenly find themselves in an in-between time where they are no longer children, but yet not quite adults.  Their bodies are changing, and they are beginning to have the capabilities to think about and comprehend the world and everything they have ever known with a whole new set of comprehensive and abstract tools.  Then on top of everything else, their emotions seem to be on a rollercoaster ride as they are going through this physical, mental, spiritual and emotional upheaval!  With everything happening in them, it is no surprise for me to see some of our youth dressed in black from head to toe, with hair in multicolored shades of red or blue, with a new vocabulary that seems to only include about half a dozen words, or with body piercing and/or tattoos in a wide array of locations on their bodies!

Yes, they are experimenting and testing the waters of life.  Yes, they are looking to find out who they really are and what they really believe and yes, they are testing those around them, those they love and befriend in order to find out just how really loved and accepted they are to them.  In my experience, I have come to realize that our youth are a product of the environment that they have been raised in, and underneath it all, that they are looking for the same securities that we adults seek in our lives.

In our story today, we see the angel Gabriel coming on the scene again as he appears to a young teenage girl with a message that could turn her world upside down!  It is interesting for me to see that there is no record of her physical features or dress.  The only description that is given is that she was “a virgin” who was “highly favored.” (Luke 1:26-28)  Have you ever thought about Mary’s appearance?  What if she wore a nose ring like Rachel the revered wife of Isaac who was one of the Patriarchs of her Jewish faith?  (See Genesis 24:22)  It would seem that God only looked upon the qualities of her heart and not on the sight of how she dressed, her hair style or the jewelry she might have worn.

What we do see as our story unfolds though, is that this young girl, who was most likely between the ages of 12–15, knew the prophecies, knew the faithfulness of her God, and was very confident and yet humble to accept and pursue whatever responsibility was given to her from Him.  When Gabriel appeared to her, she was not overtaken with fear as we saw with her uncle’s experience six months previous to this event.  I believe that the reaction that caused her to be “startled by what the angel said” and her question “How can this be?” (Luke 1:29 & 34) was simply the inquisitive request of an innocent young girl wanting to know how it would happen.  She did not ask for a sign and never doubted that it was from God, or that she could handle the calling!  Her reply to the angel’s explanation was a straightforward affirmation of: “Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word…”  (Luke 1:38 KJV)

Nowhere do we find any recorded thoughts of “Can I do this?  Am I good enough or able to accomplish this task?  What if I fail?” or “What will my family, friends and relatives think?” and maybe most importantly, “What will my husband to be think?”  I am positive that Mary’s home environment perfectly prepared her for this all-important role in God’s plan for our salvation.  She never flinched, but jumped whole heartedly into this sudden and totally unexpected turn in her life!

Once again, how would you respond to such a dramatic turn of events in your life?  Would you have the same simple confidence, zeal and freedom to let go and let God as this young teenage girl exemplified?  This short story has many things for us to consider this Christmas season.  For instance, how we look at others and how we look at ourselves.  It implores us to examine the depth of our unyielding trust in our heavenly Father, and maybe even the difference between how God looks at teenagers compared to how we view them.  This could be an advantageous time to grab a sheet of blank paper and begin to jot down some personal notes as thoughts on these questions arise within you.  It might just be the beginnings of a whole new way you look at life’s assignments, at other people and at yourself!

Have a wonderful day!  Stay in tune to His Word, and ask yourself… “Would I, like Mary, reply to God’s assignments by declaring, ‘Be it done unto me according to they word’?”

New Assignments

My return to the online cyberspace may not be a big surprise to many of you… But it was to me… Hummm… well… not really, because besides trying to get settled in my new home state of Tennessee, I have been secretly working on a brand-new blog with a somewhat familiar name but with a new theme and direction that will flow in sync with this unfamiliar but yet exciting NEW SEASON of my life!

I won’t tell you much about it here or in the next few posts, except with some teases and the hope to have the initial blog site up by the beginning of the new year!  Eventually the blog site will include study notes and more… and intertwine with my lifelong passion for black and white photography. 

To kick-start my desire to further explore my love for writing, photography and ministry, I even purchased a new laptop within weeks of my arrival in my new home here in Mt Juliet, in middle Tennessee… and I’m still learning the use of the new software, upgraded operating system (my old computer was outdated and not supported anymore!) and all the unfamiliar bells and whistles that come with the new model and brand.  But, I am also enjoying having my oldest daughter and her computer genius engineer husband just down the hill, within walking distance for my faithful pooch Fiver and I in our apartment complex.  And my older son and his family only live about 5 to 10 minutes away as well.

As it turns out, my apartment is a fair amount smaller than I thought it would be.  So… moving in and getting settled turned out to be a much longer and difficult scenario than in past moves.  Suffice to say that the majority of my furniture and boxes of ‘stuff’ reside in a storage unit about 15 minutes from my new residence. 

But I really can’t complain, for once I got it all figured out… my third-floor apartment in the building at the top of the hill in the nicely appointed complex, is actually quite livable.  I even have a pleasant view of the surrounding area of the more country area of Mt Juliet and the smaller town of Lebanon in the distance to the southeast of my balcony.  Oh… and did I mention rolling hills and small mountains on the edge of the horizon?  That alone was worth ALL the time and effort I put into this move!

I must say though, it is really good to be back in the real South again.  As I experience Tennessee and its people, I find the recollections of my past tend to bypass the six years in Oklahoma and slide right back to our special time in North Carolina.  In fact, it’s hard not to as the accents, stores, history and overall feel of the two states are almost inseparable!

Before I sign off, I just wanted to mention one point that jumped off the page at me as I started re-reading the Christmas story yesterday… beginning with Luke chapter one.  I quickly caught on to the undergirding command that went with both the assignments that the angel Gabriel brought from God to the priest Zacharias and then to the young teenage Mary.  From the very beginning he set the mood as he seemed to command the atmosphere in the room, looked them straight in the eyes and said “Don’t be afraid!”  (Luke 1:13 & 30 – God’s Word ©)

And I immediately caught on and understood what the Lord was trying to say to me, here in Tennessee a few thousand years later… and maybe to you as well, wherever you may live and in the midst of any situation that you might find yourself in.

Simply stated, “Don’t Be Afraid!”

I moved here to Tennessee with the heart-felt understanding that God had a NEW ASSIGNMENT for me.  It’s in a brand-new location, in a place that for the first time in almost 50 years, my late, beloved wife and I have not nor will not form memories together as covenant life and ministry partners.  In some respects, you could say that for the first time since my early high school years… I’m on my own again.  But not really, as I have our very supportive, older two children and their families close by and they have repeatedly let me know that they are available to help me with any assistance I may need.

So yea, It could be very scary for me… and I would be amiss if I was to say that I haven’t been tempted to participate in a pity party or two… but inside I am assured, as with every other direction or leading that the Lord has given me throughout my life… that this NEW ASSIGNMENT from HIM for me, late in life, comes with HIS full array of support, strength, wisdom,  and GRACE to accomplish whatever HE has for me to do here in The Volunteer State.  Therefore, Gabriel’s words,

“Don’t Be Afraid!”

Ring loud in my ears… and have (everyday) since we arrived early in the morning on the 29^th of August.

So, my closing thought is that we, most likely, will all be faced with the possibilities of NEW ASSIGNMENTS as this year comes to an end and a fresh new one is knocking on our front doors.  The question I leave you with is, “How are you going to answer that knock?”  Will it be with the joyful EXPECTATION of God’s constant supply and steady hand…  or… will you yield to the temptation to NOT answer that familiar knock and give into fear?

Like with Zacharias and Mary, God wouldn’t be giving you and me NEW ASSIGNMENTS if HE didn’t think that we could handle them!  So therefore, I think it best in this wonderful season of giving, to listen to the angel’s sound advice and “Don’t Be Afraid!”

Enjoy all your Christmas season events (I’ve been thoroughly enjoying one of my granddaughter’s high school plays and choir concerts – Oooh and the memories they’ve brought to mind)  Remember also, to keep up and pass on your personal joy and…

Stay tuned as there is more great new things to come!