I was just reminded of a personal experience revolving around a coincidence a few years ago that was so powerful that it has become the “reason for my enduring faith”.

Granted it is only one of a hundred experiences since coming to Christ, but nothing even close to this.

And because of this one event, nobody will ever be able to convince me that the Trinity of God isn’t real and alive and present and active in our lives. 

source: Flickr

My Conversion

When I first came to Christ in 2011 I was on fire. I had a Saul to Paul conversion experience and I was shouting my testimony from the treetops, how God instantly released me from drugs and alcohol.

It was unbelievable how people were drawn to me, believers and unbelievers alike. They would come to my office on their breaks and share with me their story of pain, confusion and hurt and I would offer wisdom, advice, and prayer.

This happened a lot

Their Heartache

One coworker who I didn’t know really well came to me one day and shared with me how he and his wife used to be missionaries but now they were back home and his wife got hooked on crystal meth. His heart bled out all over the place, we prayed, I comforted and encouraged, and he left.

I didn’t think anything about that after that day, I rarely saw him and weeks had passed.

My Intercessory Prayer

One night around 9 pm I was making the hour-long drive home from visiting my son and about 15 minutes into the trip a literal pain shot through my chest and I was filled with a sense of extreme urgency; a panicked emotion was overwhelming.

It wasn’t a heart attack as I first thought, however, because instantly I saw that man’s wife in a battle for her life and I became terrified for her. I began to pray and cry.

Mind you, I have never had anything like that happen before (or since) and I had never done remote intercessory prayer before.

But, for the next half hour, I prayed for this woman’s life whom I’ve never met and only heard about briefly weeks earlier.

And I prayed, and I cried, and I got angry, then desperate. The emotions and urgency remain super strong.

“Lord, she’s in trouble, please help, please interceded, the enemy wants to destroy her and she is not strong enough to do this on her own. Have mercy Lord, fight the battle for her, bring her victory, protect her from the evil that surrounds her”

I’m not sure why, but I never thought about that incident after that night, it’s like I forgot about it by the next morning.

Until…

The Warfare

A couple weeks later the husband came in all excited and said: “George, I’ve been meaning to tell you something for weeks, you won’t believe it”.

I could see his excitement so I told him to sit and tell me all about it. And he did.

They had taken a homeless person into their home. They let him sleep and eat there. After a couple weeks the man said he wanted to start a bible study and asked if he could use their home, they gladly agreed.

It went great for a few weeks, but my co-worker’s wife would not come out and join them no matter how much he asked (begged) her.

Then one night, with no warning, she came into the room during one of the bible studies and confessed her addiction in front of everyone, broke down in tears and asked if they would pray for her.

Of course, they did, they all stood and gathered around her and prayed intense spiritual warfare prayers for a 1/2 hour straight, casting out demon strongholds and ushering in the protection of the Holy Spirit.

I was amazed at listening to the encounter and then all of a sudden it hit me, he said: “a couple weeks ago”!

I asked him exactly when. He replied that the study is on Wednesday nights.

Hmmm, I visit my son on Wednesday nights, I then asked exactly which night and at what time.

He said, well, we had just started at nine PM and she came in a little after that… probably around 9:15.

Yep, you guessed it.

One Holy Spirit

This man, whom I didn’t know well, and his wife, whom I’ve never met, and a group of people who were all strangers to me were all engaged in a spiritual warfare battle for her life some 30 miles away at the EXACT MOMENT that I was mysteriously complelled to pray for her.

That incident still chills me to the bone some 7+ years later.

Spiritual warfare is real, and our prayer matters

God will use us in the war if our body, mind, and soul is in right standing with God through faith in Christ.

So how do you feel about coincidences?

Acts 2:38 (NIV)

³⁸ Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.