Saturday, February 20, 2010

Coincidence - I think not!

I had a good friend in Illinois who could see God's connections in cool ways. One of his favorite phrases was, "Coincidence, I think not!" as he pieced together Holy Spirit happenings. That phrase has been rolling around the last few days as I have experienced a few of those moments.

I have stumbled upon Zephaniah 3:17-18 a couple of times in the past week. Weird. A book of the bible I'm pretty sure I haven't read in total, nor can I find without using the index in my bible yet there it is.....beckoning me. Here is the verse in a "mixed" translation (NIV and the message)

The LORD your God is with you,
he is mighty to save.
He takes great delight in you,
he quiets you with his love,
he rejoices over you with singing."

The accumulated sorrows of your exile will dissipate.
I, your God, will get rid of them for you.
You've carried those burdens long enough.

Recently, I have begun memorizing some scripture with a friend. Last week it was Col 3:15 and I thought I had picked some others that would be appropriate for the coming weeks. But - in true "coincidence, I think not" form - I believe I am to hide these words from Zeph in my heart and let them marinate and work on me. And so it goes.....