Seeing God working through events

God works in mysterious ways. We know that. There are so many things that happen to us and around us that we would never have predicted and which we do not understand. Yet sometimes we are privileged to see a series of events that reveal a little of God’s unexpected kindness to us.

I can see God working in all the different people I have seen come to know Jesus. Conversions rarely happen in a simple straight line, and often a series of different people and events were involved (in a human sense). At the time, these things might look random, unexpected, and even downright unwanted. Yet, looking back, we can see that God was active drawing this person to himself in the most unlikely series of events.

Let me describe a couple of these chains of events to you. One woman I had the privilege of seeing come to faith grew up a committed Muslim. When she was on a train, a Christian was handing out flyers, and she took one. Wanting to know more, she came to the church this woman invited her to. Despite wearing the hijab, she was welcomed by the Christians there. Upon returning home to her Middle Eastern country, she found some Americans who met with her to share the gospel. She then had the opportunity to travel to Australia to support a family member who had a young baby. She turned up at my church asking if someone would tell her about Jesus. After a short while reading the Bible with some of the women in our church, she professed faith and was baptised. Was her conversion because of the clever work of our local church? No, it was all God’s work. We were the last link in a chain of people and events who influenced this woman. God was working to bring her to himself for a long time before she actually professed faith.

Likewise, I have seen people come to faith because the English tutor their company hired for them was a Christian, and their life had a big influence on them. I have seen a traveller come to our church on Christmas Day after betting himself to do it, then coming to faith some time later when it was never part of his plan for himself. A family came to know Jesus after visiting our English classes after seeing a flyer advertising the classes lying on the ground in the city. God finds ways, often ways we don’t control or expect.

This is not only something we see in conversion. I have seen people grow in their faith through a diagnosis they didn’t want or expect. Family conflict has led to people deepening in their prayer life and compassion for others. In so many ways, God is working. Most of the time we don’t see it, but our God controls all circumstances.

We need a sense of humility as we consider all of this. We make plans, but God’s plans are what come about. Sometimes we need to notice that God is working in someone’s life and take the opportunity God is giving to us. In every case, it is God who saves people, not us.

We also need a sense of mystery. Sometimes Christians of the more Reformed persuasion are tempted to reduce God to tight theological descriptions. God acts in ways we do not expect, and there will always be room to sit back in wonder at what God has done and is doing. God works in mysterious ways, and we are privileged to see just a small part of his mighty work among us.