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Surprising Conversations (8 December)

A while ago I sat in a coffee shop in Thetford enjoying a quiet cuppa, the place was busy and I saw an older gentleman looking for somewhere to sit, I suggested that he join me.  In my mind I was leaving soon anyway.  As it turned out, I didn’t leave any time soon as the gentleman was very happy to have a chat.  As we talked we found that we had a number of connections around the country about where family lived and we had a pleasant time sharing.  You may be expecting me to say that I went on to share Jesus with him, sadly I didn’t, nor did it seem to be right, however I did share companionship with him, which is of course a trait of Jesus.  I certainly told this man how and why I moved to Thetford and maybe he had never had a conversation with a Christian minister before, did I leave a God imprint with him?  Was this a God ordained conversation?  I don’t know.

When recently being shown around a house by an estate agent for a possible purchase on behalf of the EBA in Ely, I naturally explained why the Christian charity I worked for was going to possibly buy this house, after a moment of quiet, he said – have you ever heard Mike Pilavachi speak?  Not the sort of question you expect from an estate agent keen to show you the best of the house they are seeking to sell.  Of course I said, yes I had and it turned out he was going to hear him speak that evening.  So we spoke a little more about faith, I don’t suppose I will never see that estate agent again – we didn’t buy that house, but that seemed like a God given conversation!!

Surprising conversations like these always make me think about the strange way that God weaves our lives together and enters our world in so many ways when and where we don’t expect.  Am I attentive to God’s breakthrough in people’s lives and the part I may need to play in that?

In the Bible narratives describing the proclamation of Jesus’ birth, the God interventions are loud and clear, it is full of surprising conversations.  You can hardly miss one angel, let alone a host of angels or even a blinding star.  But even though they seem to be very obvious, the key players had to be attentive and more than that, to believe and take action.  Mary said yes, Joseph took on his responsibility, the shepherds left their sheep and went, and the wise men took action by a long, arduous and dangerous journey.

I sometimes question, am I so caught up in my agenda or timescale that I may miss these surprising conversations?  So perhaps when I have another surprising conversation, I pray that I may try to be more attentive to at least ask the question, is God in this?  Am I positioned here to make a difference for Jesus?  Will I change my schedule to allow this conversation to carry on?  Will I say more than just give my job title?

What about you, are you comfortable with surprising conversations? Are you attentive to what God may be doing through them?  May God bless your conversations this Advent season.