Not a Coincidence...

"In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will..."Ephesians 1:11

Since I have been on this journey of discovering God's will for me & what He wants me to do with my life, this has become more & more apparent to me - that events do not happen out of coincidence, but because God has a plan for each & every person. These "coincidental" events are God's plan playing out in everyday life.

This past week, I was in Indianapolis at a training class on Community Health Evangelism (CHE). (Sidenote - CHE is a wholistic ministry strategy that integrates spiritual ministry & physical ministry. This strategy will pretty much be the basis for my ministry in Thailand, but that's not what I want to explain to you today.) I want to give you a glimpse of how I have seen God's plan working out in my life these past few months.

Last summer, my Mom & I had decided that we were going to go to the National Missionary Convention in Lexington, KY in November. As time slipped away, we both forgot about it until a few weeks before & hadn't registered yet. Because her work schedule was so busy, my Mom couldn't go with me. I decided I was still going - by myself. Normally, this isn't something I would do (and I think it worried my Mom a little) that I would be driving 6 hours & staying in a hotel by myself for 5 days, but I am SO glad I did! This is when I first heard of CHE. I sat in on a workshop discussing the CHE strategy & all I could think was, "This puts together everything that I want to do in Thailand!" I was so excited when I left the workshop that I practically ran back to ACMI's booth to share with them what I had just learned! I found a schedule on the upcoming classes being offered & saw there would be a class in Indianapolis in May. I knew I was supposed to be in this class & decided then that I would attend.

Jump ahead a few months to February when I was in Thailand. The week that Tim & David (from ACMI) were in Thailand, we had a "meeting" day between them, myself, & Stephen. During this meeting we discussed Stephen's history, his ministry, & my ministry. Before I said anything, Stephen explained that we need to be ministering wholistically, to both the spiritual & physical needs of a person. Asians for Christ is doing a great job ministering to the spiritual needs, but they need someone to help minister to the physical needs, which is where I come in. Stephen basically spelled out the CHE strategy without me saying anything. This confirmed for me again that I was supposed to take this class. After he finished talking about his vision for my ministry, I told him that I would be taking this class in May on pretty much all that he had just talked about.

So, last week, I completed the CHE Training class. It was everything I thought it would be & SO much more! I learned what CHE is, why we are called to do CHE from a Biblical perspective, & how to do CHE. I am SO excited to have this knowledge to use for my ministry in Thailand. In addition to all that I learned, I also experienced something else that could only have been orchestrated by God.

The first day of class I met a couple who I found out were also going to Thailand! If that's not "coincidence" enough, this couple currently lives in the same town that I do! It was so exciting to get to know them, to discuss our minitries, & to think of how God may use both of our ministries together in the future.

I think it's important for us to look back & to see how God is working in our lives. He does have a plan for every person. If we just yield ourselves to His will, He will work that plan out in our lives. This is just one example of many on how I have seen God work out His plan in my life. If I had decided not to go to the NMC last fall because I didn't want to go by myself, none of this would have happened. It continues to amaze me as I look back & look toward the future how God not only works out His plan in my life, but also how He equips me & strengthens me to live out that plan!

I am SO excited to live out God's plan for me!

Serving Him,
Alicia