Our feeble understanding

So I recently did a Bible study which basically read Chip Ingram's book "God: As He Longs for You to See Him".  On of the things that has stuck with me is God's sovereignty.  In the book, Chip talks about how kingdoms fall because something happens that the person in charge didn't foresee coming.  This is precisely why God's kingdom will never fall - He knows all. 

This past week I was chatting with William about some friends who had fallen on hard times.  The woman had mentioned that she was tired.  Some of her medications needed adjusted, but she couldn't afford the lab work involved to adjust them properly.  His ears perked up.  "Do you know how much it is?"  I told him no - she had mentioned it in passing and I didn't really want to pry.  I was honestly a little surprised at how eager and interested he was.  He told me to keep my ear out and possibly find out if we could help.  I wasn't sure how to bring up the subject in an appropriate manner.  (I'm pretty socially inept.  I navigate the waters by avoiding saying anything and listening wholeheartedly.) 

So I began to pray.  "Lord - if we are meant to help these dear friends, please show us how.  Open up the door so we can help them.  You know me - I love helping...but not at the expense of their pride."

It was an honest prayer.  I know me - and I can be over-helpful at times.  So knowing WHEN to help and HOW to help is just as important as the help itself.  And I didn't want any of that.  But I definitely had a burden to help.  I had finally come to the conclusion we should just hand them some cash and tell them to use it however they saw fit. 

Meanwhile - William's car has been acting up.  He wants to get a new one and has been fighting the urge.  We have been trying to figure out...are these issues an attack we should ignore or are we being pointed in a direction?  The problems so far have been minor.  Sometimes the car doesn't start in the daycare parking lot.  It is usually cold weather, and the daycare is located such that this is basically a start/stop/restart scenario.  William has finally figured out how to 'make it work'.  His heater hasn't been working.  He lost power one time pulling out into traffic.  (That scarred the crap out of him. But it hasn't happened since.)

He called me frustrated because his car was almost overheating.  I told him he ought to call our friend and see if perhaps he could fix it - and THEN perhaps we could use that as avenue to bless them.

He latched onto the idea much quicker than I anticipated.  I figured (in all honesty) we would just end up with a new car.

But here's what I didn't know - God began speaking to William about this family.  The message was simple:  bless them.  So William chatted with the guy asking if there were any needs.  The guy chuckled and said no - directing William to someone else who perhaps needed a blessing. But that wasn't the direction William was given so he shrugged his shoulders and decided it wasn't time yet.

So when I started mentioning all of this - it was William's cue that it was time to act. In the end our car was fixed, the family was blessed when they needed it most and God moved.  To me, it looked like a bunch of puzzle pieces were thrown up into the air and landed on the ground put together perfectly.  In reality - it was a complicated 1000 piece puzzle that God had been working on for quite some time now. 

I frequently say I don't believe in luck.  I also am starting to realize I don't really believe in random events either.  And I feel honored the Lord chose to use us in His work.