A little over a week ago, I had a wonderful chance encounter. Or was it . . . ?
I was sitting in the waiting area for a gate at Minneapolis/St. Paul’s airport, waiting for my two-legged flight home to Sacramento via Phoenix, Arizona. I had been attending our church’s national Pastors Conference, which for several of us had included interviewing seven candidates for ministry in our church body. Now we were done, and it was time to head home.
Having arrived early for my flight, most of the seats in the area were empty, but soon other passengers started filling in. Among them were two ladies who sat down a couple seats to my left. I would say they were “older ladies” but won’t, just in case they read this blog. Besides, it’s getting harder all the time for me to call anyone “older.” Let’s just say at least one was in her eighties. One came in a wheelchair, and the other was using a walker.
After a while, the younger of the two headed off with the walker to pick up some food for the flight. The remaining lady and I started a conversation which began when she told me her friend/relative really liked the walker since she had trouble getting up from chairs, or from the pew “at church.” When she said that, my ears perked up, and I knew what I had to ask her: “Oh, do you mind me asking which church you go to?” Her answer, of course, was: “Lutheran.” I smiled and replied: “Of course.” Then I told her, “I’m a retired Lutheran pastor.”
The woman using the walker returned, and after the older lady informed her about my being a pastor, we all had a very nice conversation about their church (now filled with former local Roman Catholics who left their church because the new priest was not fluent in English and they couldn’t understand him) and about mine. The younger woman, named Doris, told me she goes to the casino to gamble (was this a confession? I wondered), but told me she goes with a fixed amount of cash, and whatever she wins she puts away to give to charity. So she goes for the fun and then helps others with her proceeds. I commended her generosity. Then she told me she makes quilts which she sells or gives, again for charity.
I replied that my wife was at home, helping with our church’s craft fair where they put quilts up for raffle prizes, all to benefit our church’s school. Doris asked me how big the school was, and I told her we had about 200 students. She asked for my address, and said she would send me a quilt, though since she makes them thick for Minnesota winters, it might be too heavy for the Sacramento area.
Finally, we boarded the plane, and were separated for the duration of the flight. Upon arriving in Phoenix, we “de-planed” and as we were getting ready to move on, Doris came over and asked me again how many students were at the school. Again I said 200, which pleased her. She gave me a hug, and we went on our separate ways.
This was all a pleasant encounter, which would have been fine if it had ended there; imagine my pleasant surprise when just a few days later a card arrived in the mail from Doris containing cash for the school children (from, you guessed it, her casino winnings). She apologized for not sending a quilt, saying again that it would have been too heavy for our climate.
I had thoroughly enjoyed our conversation at the airport, initiated by a “chance” reference to a pew in church. It was a great ending to a very good week focused on God and his Church. As we say at our Christian Passover service, “Dayenu,” (it would have been enough), but the arrival of Doris’ card sent it over the top. What a blessing our “chance encounter” had been!
But was it chance? Was it just a coincidence? Was the likelihood of my sitting next to two Lutherans at that airport just a function of the large number of Lutherans in the Twin Cities? Or was it somehow arranged (by you-know-Who), a divine appointment for the mutual blessing of the ladies, our school kids, and me? And who knows whether other people heard us talking, in which case we were a witness to our faith? Why did the lady even mention her church pew, when just saying “chair” would have conveyed information about Doris’s use of a walker? And why did I feel compelled to ask which church, when such a prying question from a total stranger might not be welcome these days?
You can tell by my questions where I am going with this. I do not believe it was a random, chance encounter. I believe God orchestrated it, putting us together, prompting what we shared, and moving Doris to give generously. As we confess in the Creed, I do believe in the “communion of saints,” that believers are bound together by the Holy Spirit, and if we listen to what he says, we can truly bless others and receive blessings, just by the fellowship we share. This was one of those cases. But just how often do such divine appointments occur, and when are they just coincidences?
Leading theologians (such as myself) have pondered and debated the question of how much does God ordain, and how much does he just let “happen.” Given there are volumes written about this topic – generally referred to as the “sovereignty” of God – I cannot cover all the issues in this one blog. Instead, let me share some of my thinking on this question.
First, Scripture gives us some indications about the element of “chance” in life. When, in Acts 1, the surviving apostles select a replacement for Judas, they decide between two qualified candidates by “casting lots” (basically, throwing dice). The lot falls on Matthias, and he becomes the twelfth apostle. I referred to this event during my week in the Twin Cities, when I gave a short devotion to open one day of our interviews. I said we could save a lot of time in our interviews by just rolling some dice to determine yes or no for each candidate. I tried to calm my alarmed colleagues by saying it was biblical: not only did the apostles do it, but according to Proverbs 16:33, “The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord.” In other words, God determines the outcome of “random” events. So, I said, we could rely on the outcome of our dice rolls to make the right decisions. My colleagues did not go along with that. Of course, I added that there were two other considerations in the apostles’ action: first, they had thoroughly vetted the candidates to make sure either one was duly qualified for the important role of apostle; and second, the Holy Spirit had not yet descended in power on the Church. Now that we have the Holy Spirit, we decide by prayer, trusting God to make known to us his choices – before and after doing due diligence in examining the candidates.
The Bible speaks of chance rarely; besides the Proverbs passage, Ecclesiastes 9:11 speaks of time and chance happening to everyone as factors in their success, and Jesus speaks of the Good Samaritan coming upon the injured man “by chance.” Also, in 2 Samuel 1:6, the young man who killed King Saul said, ““By chance I happened to be on Mount Gilboa, and there was Saul leaning on his spear. . .” One says that our fate results from factors outside us, and not just our own abilities; the second is a device in a parable; and the third is spoken by a man and not a prophet or apostle. None of these passages denies God’s sovereign power over what happens to us. When the Bible speaks directly on the subject, it affirms God’s power over his creation. Nothing can happen unless he allows it to happen, from its creation to its destruction to its redemption.
Psalm 135:6 says, “The LORD does whatever pleases him, in the heavens and on the earth, in the seas and all their depths.” Proverbs 16:4 says, “The LORD works out everything to its proper end—even the wicked for a day of disaster.” Ephesians 1:11 says, “In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will.” Romans 11:36 adds, “For from him and through him and to him are all things. ” I could add more verses, but I’ll stop with Lamentations 3:37: “Who has spoken and it came to pass, unless the Lord has commanded it?”
We could go on and discuss further ideas about how much God determines and how much is chance. Maybe I’ll get into them another time. But I’d rather close this blog with one thought about how this all affects us in our walk each day.
I believe that our faith calls on us to consider God and his purposes in everything we do and in everything that happens to us. In a sense we don’t have to determine whether God caused something, or it was an accident or a coincidence. The question really is: “What does God want me to do about it?” Even if God did not cause the event, he allowed it to happen; therefore, he has a purpose in it. Therefore, how should I respond? What is God’s purpose for me in this? What does he want me to say or do? Is he showing me his mercy or his disapproval? Is there someone he wants me to tell about Jesus Christ? Is there someone I am to comfort or help? Or, does he just want me to marvel at his glory and power?
In my airport encounter, though I firmly believe it was God’s doing, even if it had been a coincidence, it would have still called for my same response. I still needed to ask myself, “What does God want me to do about this?”
In every event, we need to recognize God’s presence and power over the situation, and look to him in prayer for what our response should be. We need to ask him his purpose, and what part he wants us to play. If we act according to Scriptural teachings and the foundations of our faith, then we are doing right, even if he doesn’t give us a clear direction in the moment. If we are faithful to him in our response, he will be faithful to us and use our obedience to accomplish his will (2 Timothy 2:13).
And can anything be better than that? Not a chance!
Now may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.
Read: Romans 8:26-30, 2 Timothy 2:8-13)