Just Happened?

I just happened to be serving as a youth intern the summer following my freshman year at college. In the process, I received a couple of college credits as an independent study by writing a few papers, reading a few books and preaching a few sermons… none of which were particularly painful except for the people who had to listen to me preach.  As the summer was winding down, I just happened to get a call from Eddie Hendrix at Colonial Heights inviting me to come and teach the youth group during their VBS. They almost always hired their own summer intern, but that year they just happened not to have one.  As I said, the summer was winding down, I was getting ready to head back to school and I really didn't want to mess with one more project (I had already written the final paper for the independent study). So I almost turned him down, but I just happened to work with Eddie each year at camp, and felt rather obligated to help him out.

A few days later, I just happened to get a call from Alan Smith, my college roommate, who just happened to go to the same church where I was teaching the VBS for that week. He told me that there just happened to be this girl at church that he really wanted me to date, and he offered to “fix-me-up” on my one and only blind date. He just happened to be going out of town that week or else he would have probably taught that VBS class himself, and I would have never gotten the call. And by the way, the girl just happened to be drop dead gorgeous!

OK, to make a long story short, I taught that class and stayed with the family, but I don’t remember anything about that. But I do remember that date… literally. It was August 9, 1975. We had three dates before that VBS week was over. (Maybe that’s why I don’t remember much about the class; my mind was totally on something else!)

I don’t have a theology where God is the great Puppet-master pulling the strings and micro-managing every detail of the universe. For example, I’m not sure God sends His angels to make sure I get a perfect parking place when I am going somewhere and running a bit behind. I do thank Him for things like that even though I’m not sure He caused them directly (kind of like Tim Tebow and touchdowns). But I don’t think all of those random things that just happened to happen to bring Lynn and me together just happened to happen at all. God has blessed my life in many different ways in my life, but so many of those ways just happen to revolve around the outcome of that blind date.

And today just happens to be her birthday. Happy birthday, sweetheart!