God’s providence may at times be so subtle as to be almost imperceptible except to those most attuned to it, but there are more stressful occasions when there can be no other explanation for the fortuitous things that happen, ministers say.
Citing personal experiences, the Revs. Tim O’Neal, Charles Inman, Dan Johnson and Rodrigo Munoz say God helps people in a multitude of ways. “I think God definitely does look out for people,” said O’Neal, pastor of Refuge Ministries.
“We pray for those who are traveling and people who have dangerous jobs like soldiers, police officers and firefighters. God not only provides physical providence but also spiritual providence, and we pray that he will put a hedge of protection around people and protect them from spiritual attacks because Satan comes after us through all kinds of things.”
O’Neal had just graduated from high school in 1996 in Millington, Tenn., and was working alone at night in his parents’ convenience store when two robbers came in. “They held a gun to the back of my head and said I’d be dead if I didn’t open the register within three seconds,” O’Neal said.
“I couldn’t open it because I had forgotten to hit the final sale button for the previous sale. I was hitting ‘No Sale,’ and my pinkie finger just happened to hit the final sale button and the register came open. They pistol-whipped me and locked me in the meat locker.”
Citing Philippians 4:19, which says God “will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus,” O’Neal said, “I would have hit the silent alarm, but it had gone off inside the store the week before when a kid we had working for us hit it.
“I think God was preparing me ahead of time not to do it.”
Inman, pastor of the First Baptist Church at Monahans, said his belief “has always been that God never shows me the end of the road, he just shows the next door to walk through, and that door often leads to unexpected and wonderful opportunities.”
Inman said some people think life is pre-destined “and we are all God’s puppets, but I don’t believe that.
“He allows people to make choices, and one Biblical example of that is Judas at the Last Supper,” he said. “Jesus knew which road Judas was going to take, but he was still giving him the chance to take a different road. Judas had a choice, and we all have choices.”
Inman said the D-Day invasion of France on June 6, 1944, during World War II was clearly providential. “The weather was perfect from the Allies’ standpoint because the Germans didn’t see the ships until they were almost on them,” he said.
“Then the fog lifted. There are always those situations where we’re driving and are delayed and there is a terrible accident that we would have been in if we’d left on time.”
Johnson, head elder of Emet Ha Torah Church, said God “brings people into your pathway who can help you or bring you understanding or wisdom, and he brings about circumstances either to teach you a lesson or to help you through trials and tribulations.
“I don’t think there is such a thing as coincidences, although circumstances may look like one,” Johnson said. “For example, you may be on a journey when something happens to delay you, and if you’re five or 10 seconds farther ahead, a truck or a car runs a red light. I think that’s a God intervention, not happenstance.”
He said there are many Bible stories in which God intervenes, and those prove his continued interest in people’s lives. “If we call on his name, we are more likely to see his hand or providence in our lives,” Johnson said.
“I’ve also seen things take place, those wild moments, with those who were not particularly obedient to bring them to a better understanding.”
Munoz, pastor of Iglesia Roca Solida (Solid Rock Church), said God “is always taking care of his people, providing and looking out for them.
“We serve a good God,” Munoz said. “Whatever we need, he makes sure we’re taken care of. He gives us health and takes care of our daily food and clothing. As long as we put him first, he opens doors and gives us opportunities. We should put him first by recognizing as soon as we wake up in the morning that he has given us that day.”
Munoz said there are also more dramatic instances of providence like the times injuries are otherwise inexplicably avoided. “People are not as grateful as we should be,” he said.
“We should recognize that the lives we have come from God because he is life. Without him, we wouldn’t exist. We should live with an attitude of thanksgiving for this wonderful country because we have a lot of liberties that other countries don’t have. Missionaries experience that firsthand and really start to appreciate it when they come back.”
