Have you ever found that what the devil meant for evil, God meant for good? Sometimes, opportunities for distress can actually be opportunities for glory. I think God often plays the devil like a pawn.
Last Monday, I got an emergency phone call from Jessica. She needed me to get home urgently. While she was sitting on the couch with our baby in our new home, a strange man opened the front door and walked right into our living room without knocking.
This shook Jessica up, but she maintained her peace. She had the intruder step outside, locked the door behind her to protect David, and talked with him about the situation. She was frightened when he reached into his bag to pull something out. It was a perfect opportunity for something horrible.
It was just a piece of paper with an address. What a relief! It turns out that he had been falsely given our address as his new home. Needless to say, Jessica had the guy leave our property right away.
I ran to the car from work and floored it. My plan was to get home ASAP and try to find this guy to see if he was a threat.
Nearing our road, I saw a young man sitting on the street corner with 2 suitcases and a backpack. As I pulled up, I was quickly discerning whether or not to give him a 5-fold blessing (knuckle-sandwich). But as he approached the window, compassion filled my heart.
“Are you the guy who walked into my house and freaked out my wife and baby?” I asked.
“Yes! I couldn’t believe it. I’m so sorry that happened.” He went on to explain his situation and how upset he was about it. He was innocent and never intended to scare anyone. He was just as shocked as Jessica because he was probably scammed.
I offered to drive him to the hotel he recently began working at because he was currently homeless.
As I was driving, the Holy Spirit told me to share the gospel with him. It turned out he was already a believer; but I don’t think he was much of an experiencer yet.
I learned that when he was 6, his father raped him and then put him up for adoption. His new parents adopted him for tax benefits and free labor. When he was old enough, he left and has been a vagabond ever since.
But this day, he met God as his Father!
Before I dropped him off, I asked if he wanted the Holy Spirit to touch him. He said yes. As I invited His presence upon this young man, God came in great power and love. He said that he felt electricity and the weight of God’s presence upon him, while at the same time, the burden lifting off of his heart.
I asked how it feels. He said, “It feels amazing! Yet I find that I thirst for more.” Hallelujah! I read John 7:37-38 to him. He can drink of this living water any time he desires if he just believes. Then, he asked the Holy Spirit to fill him again, and He did.
This man said he felt something change inside.
If there were ever a home intrusion, this is the kind I want it to be. God turned the tables and intruded into his life.
He thought he was renting a room with strangers. Little did he know that he was getting a Father and a Friend!
Friends, we may have crazy circumstances come at us at times. But we need to take a moment and decide if we will view them by fear or by opportunity. Not all situations are really as they appear. Sometimes, what looks like a bad circumstance is really a divine setup.
When we cultivate awareness of the Holy Spirit, we find how ready He is to reveal His love and glory in any situation. He is able to redeem anything and make it an amazing testimony.
“But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive” (Genesis 50:20).
What ways have you seen a bad circumstance turn out to be a divine setup for God’s glory?
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