Coincidence or Christ?

Another example:. I will hear a song or words spoken on the radio in answer to a thought, concern, or feeling I have. I believe this is God answering me.

The most startling example I can recall occurred years ago, when I was working late on a restaurant job. I could only work after hours, from ten o’clock at night until six in the morning. I had worked the past three nights, and loss of sleep was catching up to me. I was really worried this particular night about being hurt in a possible car accident while going to work. The job was almost twenty-five miles from our home, and my wife was very unhappy and nervous about my driving alone at night. I drank a lot of coffee and tried to be as alert as possible. Once at work, I was fully awake, but the drive there was the tough part.

I prayed nervously before I jumped into my truck; I really prayed. I turned on the radio loudly to keep myself awake. Just then, the station played “Kyrie Eleison” by Mr. Mister. The exact verse was:

Kyrie eleison down the road that I must travel
Kyrie eleison, through the darkness of the night
Kyrie eleison, where I’m going will you follow
Kyrie eleison, on a highway in the light

I burst into tears of joy and relief! Why? For a number of reasons. First, I am Greek, and those particular words mean a lot. Kyrie eleison means “Lord have mercy” in Greek, and it’s part of a prayerful plea to God. Second, my mother had died about eight years earlier, and this was one of her favorite songs. Third, I felt God was answering me specifically and telling me not to worry, that I would be protected. Talk about timing and word selection. This could not be coincidence!

There are 1,440 minutes in a day (24 x 60). There are thousands of song possibilities. Even if we said there were only two thousand songs, this would already be a 2,880,000 to one chance that this song would play at this minute of my departure (1,440 x 2,000). This does not take into account the exact words that touched me at that moment, or my past experiences, or that I am Greek.

Maybe the Lord has answered you in this way. Often, we don’t consider timing as the major factor that it is.

A lot of people tell me about a recurring scenario. For no apparent reason, they will think about someone in their past or think of a friend or family member. Shortly afterward, they’ll hear about that person or receive a phone call. What are the odds this is just coincidence or is God-guided?

How many people do you know, past and present? A hundred, five hundred, or even a thousand? How quickly after you thought about a certain person did that person call? A day, an hour, five minutes? For instance, let’s say out of five hundred friends, family, acquaintances, someone calls within twenty minutes after you think of that person. There 1,440 minutes in a day divided by 20 = 72 (72 twenty-minute periods in a day). The rough odds of the person calling you within twenty minutes after you thought of him or her would be (72 x 500) or 36,000 to 1.

Would you call odds like that a coincidence? Not likely. Perhaps God had a purpose for this event or connection.

Another example of events often labeled coincidence occurs at chance meetings or in casual conversation. I have met new people and just started talking. Usually, I’ll learn they went to the same high school or college as I did, they know some of the same people I do, or they have been to some of the same places or have lived in the same town as I have. For example, there are about thirty-five thousand cities and towns in the United States, according to the US Geological Survey. That’s already a thirty-five thousand to one chance you’ve lived in the same town or know someone from there, but you probably are not factoring in the timing. The fact that you met this person or are even talking about it at the same time multiplies the odds astronomically.

Let’s think back to some of the questions in the personal survey in chapter 4. What unique life experiences have you had? Which uncommon people have you met or come in contact with?

I believe this is not all coincidence but divine intervention and possible guidance. Sometimes all we have to do is keep our minds open, watch, listen, and observe miracles that occur all around us, constantly and every day.