God is so big, how else is He supposed to communicate with us, except through coincidence?
Case and Point: I recently went camping in the Sequoias with four friends and an old RV. I prayed several days before the camping trip that God bless the trip and let it be a rejuvenating experience for everyone. I prayed all week, because I was nervous about the trip and really wanted it to go well.
The morning that we left for the trip, an old man just happened to be walking outside of my house. I greeted him and we chatted briefly about the RV and my trip. When he heard that I was going to the redwood trees, he said, "I love it up in the Sequoias. Angels made them, you know. They're a blessing on earth. Do you study the Bible, by any chance?" He then invited me to a Bible study that he holds at his house every Monday night.
I thought it was a strange coincidence that I would meet someone who spoke so openly about God on the very morning that I was leaving on my trip.
Sadly, it seemed that everything that could go wrong, did go wrong on the first day of the camping trip. The RV broke down 3 times on the road to the Sequoias. A 4-hour drive turned into an overnight extravaganza, "camping" on the side of the road halfway up a mountain when the RV finally died at 1am. Despite all of the terrible things that could have happened, we were able to keep the RV running, and even more importantly, everyone stayed in high spirits. We made it to our camp ground and found ourselves stunned by how intensely beautiful the camp site was. We spent the next four days hiking, eating, and lazing around in the outdoors. When we finally left, everyone gushed about how perfect and wonderful the camping trip was, and how they couldn't wait to do it again.
Did God stop the RV from breaking down? No.
Did God work in our hearts so that, even when everything went wrong, we stayed in good spirits and still had a great time? Yes. Exactly.
And how did I know that the camping trip would be perfect? Because on the morning that we left, God sent one of His workers to my house to hint at His presence. God sent me a coincidence. Through the presence of another believer, I knew that my prayers had been answered, and that God's joy would be with us in the sequoias.
This is how God speaks to us, and this is how we begin to see Him... not in the wonder of His creations, such as the redwood trees... but as an incidental meeting, a crossing of paths, between two people who have the Spirit in their hearts. The old man may not have said it directly, but his presence confirmed the truth -- that God heard me, that God answered, and that God wants me to know He's here.
