Coincidence? I think not!

“It was amazing how you could get so far from where you'd planned, and yet find it was exactly were you needed to be.” Sarah Dessen, American writer (b1970)

A series of remarkable events led me to this moment in time. Some would call it coincidence, but the series of “happenings” seemed too intentional to be coincidence.

It was Wednesday morning and I was seated in the Deacon’s Chair next to the Pastor, Father Paul, who was presiding at the Mass. I had met Father Paul 2-3 years earlier when he had sought my advice on introducing stewardship to his parish.

His parish, Holy Name of Jesus Church, is a heavily-interracial parish in south/central Los Angeles at the corner of Jefferson and Arlington. I was assisting at the Mass for the 6^th through 8^th graders from the elementary school attached to the parish.

We had just sat down following the opening rite. I cast a quick glance at Father Paul to make sure he was settled. It was then that my eye fell upon the huge stained glass window overlooking the altar from a side apse. The image of St. Peter Claver compassionately staring down at a slave he was blessing triggered a recollection of the events of the past two and a half weeks.

Less than three weeks earlier, I received a kind but hurried call advising me that once again I had been the first runner-up to a job I thought was perfect for me. Fueled by frustration, I quickly jumped back onto the Web and resumed my job search.

Almost immediately I found a job opening at a church whose name was familiar, though at the time I didn’t realize why. Quickly I assembled the requisite documents and emailed them off. In less than a day, I received a return call from “Cathy.”

After asking some basic informational questions, she unexpectedly asked,  “Can you meet with me tomorrow.” My hopes sank for a moment. I had an important meeting already scheduled for the next day. “Where would you like to meet me?” I asked guardedly. “Well, I live in Pasadena, “she began. This time my heart leapt, because my meeting was in Pasadena. Our meeting was quickly arranged at a coffee shop just two blocks from the location of my other meeting.

The interview was for a position as a Director of Marketing and Development for an inner-city Catholic Elementary school. 95% of their graduates go on to college.  The intent is to attract more students, but to do so they need to raise the money to subsidize the school as well as other necessary expenses and improvements.

Cathy and I hit it off immediately. Oddly, we could not quite determine how my documents made it to Cathy in the first place, since it appeared I applied to a job web posting that did not exist. Just a coincidence we thought. 

After about an hour, Cathy announced she was going to recommend me to the next interview level. To my shock, one of the two interviewers in the next round was another person I knew – Julie.

Friday of the same week, I had the next interview, and by the end of the week in which I had applied, I managed to satisfactorily complete all but one of the required interviews. On Tuesday of the following week, I attended my final interview with Father Paul and the Principal, Marva. And I discovered at the interview that President of the Parents Advisory Board was also an acquaintance – Audrey.

The job offer was made on Wednesday, I accepted on Thursday, and I started work the following Tuesday.

On my first day, each class took a turn coming to visit me to welcome me. Each class brought hand-crafted cards. The outside doors of their classrooms displayed “Welcome, Deacon Jim” signs. I knew I was where I belonged.

A day later, I was serving at my first school Mass, and there was St Peter Claver watching over me. Why is that special you might ask? Well, he’s the Patron Saint of my home parish… Obviously he was checking in to make sure I was OK. Just a coincidence?

We are often quick to exclaim: “Wow, what a coincidence!” I have a friend, Mary, who always says: “Coincidence? I think not.” It’s her mantra, in fact.

For some reason, we are more willing to believe the world operates on some kind of chancy randomness –a series of cosmic rolls of the dice – rather than the more obvious conclusion that there is an ongoing intelligent design at work. carefully guided by a supreme power. There is a plan, and we are very much a part of that plan! 

By moving forward with faith that God has a plan in operation, we can often move from one encounter to the next almost effortlessly.  As stewards of this life God has given us, we come to accept the reasons for things are rarely readily-apparent, but the opportunities abound if we open our eyes to them. 

This does not mean we wait around for an inspiration or divine intervention.  Rather, we are called to make the best beginning we can.  The more we do, driven by love and not ego, the more we sense a direction. 

When we go with God’s flow, things just seem to happen miraculously. When, on the other hand, we think we have a better way…when we insist on having things our way, the green lights and blue skies sometimes fade and are replaced by blank walls and dead ends.

The Lord is making miracles all the time.  You are one of them. 

Dear God: Help me to live the life you have planned for me. 

“We aren’t just thrown on this earth like dice tossed across a table. We are lovingly placed here for a purpose. ~Charles Swindoll, American evangelical Christian pastor, author, educator and radio preacher (b1934)

©2012 James E. Carper. All rights reserved.

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