don’t miss divine appointments!
Teach us to realize the brevity of life, so that we may grow in wisdom. - Psalm 90:12
Life is short.
This is a fact that we try to avoid at all costs because it is uncomfortable. We pack our days full of activities, people, and things trying to get it all in, to maximize our limited time by doing as much as possible. We keep ourselves busy and distracted from the steadily diminishing time we have and in doing so, we often miss out on the most important things.
In the past couple of years, I have been slowly learning to let go of my plans and ideas for how my days should go. To approach time less as a commodity and more as a gift. To relinquish my delusions of control and open myself up to what God is doing all around me. To notice the people and situations right in front of me.
There is a lot to notice if you dare to look up from your busyness to bother yourself with noticing.
My dear friend and counselor Linda Herron gave me a question to ask at the beginning of each day. I believe this is a question that is beneficial for all of us to ask. The question is simply “God, what would you have me focus on today?”
God, what would you have me do with my schedule today?
God, who would you have me notice today?
God, where would you have me go today?
In asking myself this question and really opening myself up to following through on whatever God reveals, I have experienced life in a way I never have before. I tend to get so stuck in my own thoughts, plans, and goals, that I miss out on connecting with the people right in front of me! Maybe you’ve been there too. If so, dare to invite God into your moments. Dare to look up and notice the people around you. Dare to yield your plans in favor of God’s.
Knowing my tendency to distraction, as I walked into the grocery store the other day, I breathed a quick prayer: “Lord, please help me notice my divine appointments today.”
Upon entering the store, An older man almost ran into me with his cart as he careened wildly around the corner where I was standing. “Woah!” he exclaimed, and we shared a laugh and a brief moment of good together.
Walking down the aisle, a lady on a phone call was struggling to push her overloaded cart with one hand and hold her device in the other. I made space for her to pass me, and as she did so, she winked and smiled at me. Another successful connection!
Having gathered my groceries, I headed to the electronics section to get my passport photos taken. The area was swamped with other customers who were visibly impatient and upset. The employees were stressed and frazzled. I waited quietly, wondering what God would have me notice here.
“We’ll be with you in a moment!” One employee, Marie, exclaimed in my general direction. “No worries,” I responded, setting my basket on the floor in anticipation of a long wait. One man was on the phone with an irate customer, two others were serving clients who were unhappy with their passport photos, and Marie was trying to hold the situation together.
Eventually, I was seated to take my passport photos. As I wandered back to the passport desk to wait while the photos were developing, I noticed that Marie was close to tears. She explained that today had been difficult. Her hours had been cut after Christmas and she was a single mom working two jobs trying to make ends meet. She was overwhelmed with the customer service aspect of her job, as people never seemed to be satisfied with anything. And she was just so tired.
As we chatted, I was able to acknowledge her pain and struggle. To really see her and to encourage her. To let her know that she is not alone.
And really, that is the most encouraging thing of all, isn’t it? To know that you’re not alone in your struggle. To know that another person notices you and values you enough to take a moment out of their day to care.
Divine appointments aren’t necessarily glamorous or earth-shattering. They are ordinary moments in ordinary days, made extraordinary by the presence of God gently nudging us to be His hands and feet to the people around us. They are small points of connection with those we encounter, showing others that they are noticed and loved. Divine appointments open our hearts to love more fully, to serve more willingly, and to notice more readily.
Divine appointments are ordinary moments in ordinary days, made extraordinary by the presence of God gently nudging us to be His hands and feet to the people around us.
Divine appointments are a reminder that nothing is coincidental or accidental in God’s plan. There is no moment of your life that is insignificant to God. He meets you just as much in the mundane as in the miraculous.
God orchestrates all the events of our lives. He arranges the timing, places, and events we experience. None of the things we go through escapes His loving gaze. None of the people we interact with are inconsequential to God. He devises divine appointments to remind us of His goodness and grace.
Divine appointments display the goodness of God in our regular lives. They are often small, seemingly irrelevant moments laced with God’s presence and love. Sometimes they show up as a verse or passage that just keeps popping up. Sometimes they show up as a friend bearing your burdens with you. Sometimes they show up as an unexpected provision. Sometimes they show up as a beautiful sunrise that brings you to tears.
However they show up, divine appointments serve as a reminder that we are not going through this life alone. We can be the ones who remind others that good is still available and that God still cares. That no matter how dark, no darkness can overcome God’s light.
Why not ask God today? Lord, help me notice my divine appointments today.
