Have you ever heard or used the phrase “the Lord works in mysterious ways”? I have, and also experienced it recently. If you have been a believer long enough, you know that God has some interesting and sometimes amusing ways to get your attention and move you to do his will.
This past week, I attended the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writer’s Conference at Ridgecrest Conference Center in Black Mountain, North Carolina. Last Sunday afternoon, I left my mountain perch near Grandfather Mountain, North Carolina, and headed south to Black Mountain. It was a sunny afternoon — perfect for a drive down mountain roads.
I hopped in the Jeep and turned the radio on to The Message, a Christian station playing praise music. I checked my directions and started down the mountain. It was a lovely drive down the mountain, around the curves, and sometimes beneath a canopy of trees. Everything was that beautiful green of late spring. It would have been a perfect drive if that jacked-up pickup truck hadn’t tailed me for thirty minutes. (He should have passed me when he had the chance).
About an hour into the drive, I ascended a different mountain. I’ve driven this way before so I knew I was close to my destination. My GPS told me I had thirty more minutes until I arrived at the conference center. Perfect. I would arrive a few minutes before check-in. That would give me an hour to unload the Jeep, put my things away, and study my conference notes before our first event, dinner. I looked forward to meeting some online writing friends for the first time in person.
It was a perfect plan.
I pulled into the conference center, parked in front of the reception area, and checked in. I gathered my key, the site map, and the conference program and stuck them in my tote. On the way back to my car, I met a friend I had only known online. The fun was beginning. I followed the drive to the building where my room was located, towards the back of the property, and up the mountain a ways. I found a parking place, although not as close to the building as I would have liked.
As I put the Jeep into park, an alert showed on the monitor: Caution. Severe Thunderstorm approaching — in twenty minutes. I glanced up at the sky and noticed the dark clouds in the south. The thunder was already rumbling. My goal was to get my things into my room before the sky fell and I knew I didn’t have much time.
You would think I would be a better packer, as much as I travel from place to place, but I am not. I knew it was going to take two trips.
I took my suitcase and a couple of other bags out of the trunk. I grabbed my purse and tote bag and slung them over my shoulder. I would get the rest in a few minutes if the rain held off. As a last thought, I got my water out of the front console and stuck it in my tote. It’s my favorite cup for water but it doesn’t seal shut.
Maybe you can guess where this is going.
I felt like a pack mule carrying my loads up to my room on the second floor. Thankfully, there was an elevator. When I set my things down, I discovered that my water had tipped in my tote and my site map and conference program were soaked. Not just a little wet, not just damp around the edges, but completely soaked. So much for my perfect plan to sit quietly in my room, by myself, until dinner.
I put my clothes away and freshened up for dinner then returned to the front desk to get a new map and conference program that wasn’t soggy. I decided to find a place to sit and look over the program in the remaining time before dinner, not wanting to trudge all the way back to my room.
A small seating area in the lobby looked inviting, like someone’s living room. A man and a woman were in conversation, so, I took a seat opposite them. A few minutes later, another woman walked over and sat in the chair next to mine. She introduced herself and said it was her first time at BRMCWC. I learned that it was the gentleman’s first time as well.
We chatted and I answered some of her questions. I had attended the conference a few times so when she told me what she wrote, I suggested faculty members that might be helpful. We ended up having dinner together and going to the first assembly together. I remembered what my first time at the conference was like and how kind some conference attendees had been to me. I felt compelled to do the same for this new acquaintance.
My new writer friend, Donna, and I shared more meals together during the week. We worshipped and prayed together in the assembly meetings. We shared things we had learned from our classes and encouraged each other. We started the week as strangers and ended it as friends.
As I reflected on the week, I realized if I had not been rushing because of the approaching storm, and if I had not carelessly put my water into my tote only to have it spill and ruin my conference notes, I would not have had any reason to go back to the front desk. If I had not returned to the front desk to get new conference notes, I would not have met a new writer friend.
Thank you, Lord, for impending storms and spilled water. Thank you for using seemingly unimportant things to move me in the direction you want me to go. And thank you for interrupting my plans and replacing them with yours. They are always better.
Have you ever experienced a divine appointment? Has the Lord ever used unusual circumstances either to grab your attention or lead you in a certain direction? I’d love to hear.
The phrase “the Lord works in mysterious ways” is not found in the Bible. It is attributed to William Cowper, an English poet in a hymn he wrote in 1773. I found an interesting story about it here.
Kim Wilbanks 