Do you ever wonder how God works things out so perfectly?

I often think it’s amazing how things just seemingly “fall into place”.

Last fall, I went to a scrapbooking retreat. I arrived early in the afternoon on the first day.

There was only one other woman there. She was already set up and scrapping away. I sat at a table next to her and started working.

We chatted all afternoon and greeted the other ladies as they arrived.

The next morning, quite a few other ladies were arriving and we had to start sharing tables. The lady I had met invited me to sit at her table since we had been chatting so much.

She was a single mother most of her daughter’s life. We had a lot in common and we were able to talk about many of the frustrations we’ve experienced in life and in church. She was a refreshing encouragement to me. She had a wonderful outlook on life and she shared with me things she had learned through her frustrations.

Her daughter had been married recently and she actually joined us at the retreat later that day. I was encouraged to see what a wonderful girl she was and to see her love for the Lord. Single moms raising Godly children on their own is such a hard job and I was delighted to see how well this mom had done.

She told me how she and her daughter loved Angel Tree and always supported it. She said, “I just always wonder if the kids really get the toys and if it helps.”

So, I told her about Lee. I told her that Angel Tree was a wonderful encouragment to our family.

She said, “You know I think the Lord had you sit at my table for a reason.” She went on to tell me how her ex-husband had been in and out of prison for many years. He had a drug addiction and she still loved him, but couldn’t stay married to him.

She understood so much of what I was going through with the single parenthood and then on top of that she knew about having a loved one in prison.

I was just amazed that God had worked this all out for me. I had a wonderful restful weekend away. I was able to work on my favorite hobby. But most importantly, I spent the entire weekend with a woman who was able to understand the difficulties I was living through. The encouragement, laughter, and serious discussion we shared that weekend was a wonderful blessing for me.

Only God could have orchestrated something like that.

Filed under: Encouragement | 3 Thoughts Shared »