Candy Canes, Broken Projectors, and Providence

December 3

I’m pretty sure that we’ve all heard the phrase:

But there are some times when He allows us to catch a glimpse of just how He works in our lives.

Case in point… this past weekend…

To set the scene… my wife (being the wonderful Proverbs 31 kind of gal that she is) does her due diligence to make the most out of our every penny. In a recent bout of online holiday shopping, she came upon one of those deals of which you just have to take advantage. But to get “free shipping” she had to purchase one extra item of more than a dollar. Being an elementary school teacher, she ended up selecting some special candy canes for her children at school.

Unfortunately she was notified (later) by email that her candy canes could not be shipped to us (because they would likely be crushed in process) – so she would have to pick up her special canes in-store.

The problem was that the company would not send the canes to any store near us. We would have to drive some 30+ miles to pick up her $2 canes (now her special canes are getting even more special! ).

Taking the opportunity to have a date night, we decided to take in a movie and then drive the short distance from the theater to where her canes were shipped.

Next problem… on the way to the theater, we discover that the store’s hours for all pickups is only from 8am to 8pm. That’s right. By the end of the movie, the store’s pickup center would be closed. (This is a lot of angst for a sugar rush for her kids!).

Enter the handiwork of God…

I have never seen this happen… In the middle of the movie, the projector just stops working. Bottom line… the problem cannot be resolved, we get free passes for a future movie, and the time is 7:40. Just enough time (according to our GPS) to get to the store in time to beat the 8pm deadline for picking up her canes.

We make it with a few minutes to spare.

And now, with special canes in hand (finally!)… we head back out to our car. Where we discover the real reason for all the “fateful” events of our day…

In the parking space right next to ours is a family in distress. They are far from home and their car won’t start. The mom of the family asks if we have jumper cables — which “by chance” we do.

After a lengthy time of struggle (trying to get the cables connected just right) her car finally starts.

You could just feel the relief in the air (from the whole family) as I get a thankful bear-hug from a total stranger, in a strange parking lot, in a strange town.

We were in the right place. At just the right time. With just the right provision… to meet the needs of a family in desperate need of help!

Sure… it could all be a coincidence. But my wife and I have been praying that we would be more of a blessing to people in need – and, as we were driving home, there was a real sense of wonder as we both recognized the Hand of God in the midst of all the little frustrations that dominated our evening.

Maybe we all just need to be reminded that we are here on this earth because God wants to show His love through us… whenever opportunity arises.

And we shouldn’t be surprised when we find that God is in the midst of all those opportunities.

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