One afternoon on a weekend, I was taking a nap when I suddenly woke up alarmed, somehow certain that our three sons aged 6 to 10 were in serious danger. I raced to the front room and looked out the window, only to see them sitting calmly on the step talking with a neighbor kid. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, so I opened the door a crack and listened. An older teenager from down the street had their undivided attention. He was telling them that the gay lifestyle was wonderful and fulfilling. Immediately, I opened the door wide and told the boy with strong words to leave and not come back. I strongly believe that God intervened in this situation because of our prayers for the safety of our kids, and in doing so protected them from a situation where sexual abuse would have been likely.
Signs for Mike
Mike C. was a fellow employee who often vocalized his belief in the non-existence of God. One day after work, we entered into a discussion in the parking lot. During the course of the conversation Mike stated, “In my entire life I have never experienced a single event that I would consider supernatural, or even mysterious.” I said, “Well I'm going to pray that you do.” And so I did. The next day, Mike was giving me a hand at the parts washer, when suddenly I felt a sensation of panic, as though I was drowning. I gasped, and when Mike asked what was wrong, I told him what I had felt. I noted the time and said, “I have never felt this before.
I'm going to ask around and see if anyone I know had something happen to them at 9:50 am.”
That evening when I arrived home, I asked Brenda,
“Did anything unusual happen today?” She replied, “No, not really.” So I asked, “How about something scary?”
101
She looked puzzled and said, “As a matter of fact, I went to a tanning place and when the door on the tanning bed closed it jammed and I couldn’t get out. I panicked! But then when I pushed really hard it opened, and everything was okay.” So I asked, “About what time would you say that was?” I avoided leading her in any way. She said, “Well, I left the one place about 9:30 and got to the tanning place about 9:45.” So I asked, “Exactly what time do you think the door jammed?” She was puzzled why I would even care, but then said, “I would guess it was about five minutes later, or about ten minutes to ten,” which is of course 9:50am, the exact time I had noted!
The next day, I relayed that conversation to Mike, but I could see he didn't believe a word of it. He apparently thought I must have fabricated the entire story for his benefit, so I let it drop. However, about a year or so later, another experience also involved Mike.
It began on a Sunday morning when in the course of teaching a class I commented that coincidences can be signs from God that let us know he is with us and loves us. I also mentioned in the same class that Brenda and I had been using firewood to cut our heating costs, and mentioned that we needed firewood should anyone know of any. Someone in the class may have prayed for us, because when we arrived home from church, there was a trailer loaded with firewood parked in our driveway. Ben, a landscaper who did not attend our church had cut down a tree for a customer and thought he might be able to dispose of the wood by giving it to us.
Later that day and during the next there were several more “coincidences.” They were less significant than the firewood, but still I was recording each in my journal. The sudden cluster seemed unusual. I continued to note coincidences over the next several days.
102
By
Thursday,
I
had
documented
fourteen
“coincidences,” the first one being simply the mention of coincidences in Sunday School. So I decided to share my list with my skeptic friend Mike. Just as I finished reading the list to him, Gina came out from the office. In the noisy machine shop she was completely unaware of our conversation, but said excitedly, “Guess what happened yesterday? We had a bill where we owed a large amount of money, and I had no idea how we were going to pay it. So, I prayed about it. Then yesterday, when I went out to the mailbox, there was an unexpected check for exactly that amount of money. It was a miracle!”
Mike emphatically commented, “It wasn't a miracle!”
So I said, “Look, here I am, sharing a list of fourteen coincidences, when Gina stops by and shares an amazing coincidence of her own. That in itself is another coincidence.
These aren't just coincidences, but God wants to show you that he is real.” To this Mike replied, “The reality is that both of you are living in some other sort of reality – a Terry reality.” And then he walked away, and that was the end of that. Except then I told Gina what we had just been talking about, and shared the list of coincidences with her. I still have that journal somewhere, and it reminds me that not only is God with us, but he loves us and wants to reveal himself to us.
Also, I actually think Mike was on to something. It is scriptural that there is an alternate reality that overlaps this earthly one. Jesus often mentioned the Kingdom of God, telling people that it was near, or upon them. In Luke 17:20-21, Jesus even declared that “The Kingdom of God is in your midst!” In other words, the Kingdom of God is all around us and inside us, being seen and felt by those who know God!
I often think about Mike when I run into people who reject God. To me, the way God tried to make himself known to Mike is proof that God is calling everyone to 103
himself, and offering a gift of faith to anyone who can find the will to break free from the chains of skepticism and receive it. •
104