02.21.13

Now an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, saying, "Arise and go toward the south along the road which goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza." This is desert. So he arose and went. And behold, a man of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority under Candace the queen of the Ethiopians, who had charge of all her treasury, and had come to Jerusalem to worship, was returning. And sitting in his chariot, he was reading Isaiah the prophet. Then the Spirit said to Philip, "Go near and overtake this chariot." So Philip ran to him, and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and said, "Do you understand what you are reading?" And he said, "How can I, unless someone guides me?" And he asked Philip to come up and sit with him. - Acts 8:26-31 NKJV. 

Kraai McClure and Scott Beautler were in the right place at the right time to rescue two little girls. McClure and Beautler were driving on a state highway near Naselle, Oregon when they just happened to notice some damage to a tree and decided to stop to check it out. Scott says that something "struck him as weird" about the tree damage. What they found was an accident scene and two little girls who survived. Jessica Rath, the mother of the two girls had apparently fallen asleep while driving; struck the tree and was killed. The 4-year-old girl was able to get her 2-year-old sister who was injured out of the vehicle and covered them both with a blanket. The overnight temperature was in the lower 40s and the girls could have died from exposure in the cold and rain. The girl's father is now caring for them. 

Was it just luck or coincidence that McClure and Beautler happened to be in the right place at the right time noticing "something weird" about a tree? I choose to believe that it was an act of God directing their attention to the tree damage, enough so that they stopped to check it out. 

The story about Phillip and the Ethiopian in the Book of Acts gives us instruction about the right time and right place thing. There was nothing accidental about Phillip being there when the Ethiopian passed by. It was not accidental because God placed Phillip at that exact place and time so that he could be a witness to the Ethiopian. There was nothing accidental about McClure and Beautler being in the right place at the right time either. 

How often do events occur and we pass them off as just being luck or coincidence that we are there in the right place at the right time? How often do we fail to take advantage of opportunities to witness or to help even though God has supernaturally placed us where we will be able to witness or help? 

The next time you appear to be in the right place at the right time, look around, and see what it is that God would have you to do.