When Marti and I were first getting to know each other we used to call God our social coordinator. That was because being that we were about 500 miles apart, our time together was usually limited and we wanted to make the most of it. We were also both very busy in our own ministries and didn’t have time to plan our get-togethers, and yet it was uncanny how there always seemed to be just the right restaurant or cafe handy with a quiet table so we could talk. This extended to being in the right place at the right time for a free concert or special event we couldn’t have possibly known about in advance. So we kept saying, “God set that up!”

Well it seems the Lord was up to His tricks again last night when a crowded restaurant I originally planned for a family celebration of Marti’s birthday gave way to another restaurant nearby with a table for six in an outside patio area that consisted of only two tables in a quaint breezeway between two blocks of shops and restaurants in downtown Laguna Beach. (Has anyone else noticed that restaurants seem to have gotten more noisy and crowded lately as if they were physically designed to raise the conversation level to a shout? I guess the idea is if you are crowded and loud you must be the place everyone wants to be. In most places, a table for six will mean you can count on hearing only the person on your right or on your left if they shout in your ear.)

It was a perfect place to celebrate and also to capture Annie’s surprise appearance having driven in from her residency in San Bernardino to make our family complete – a fact only I knew about and a delightful surprise for everyone (especially Marti), even if she did show up in her scrubs (no time to change).

Now am I stretching things or making light of God’s holiness by suggesting Him as event coordinator for Marti’s dinner party? I think not. I think I am pointing out that God, through His Holy Spirit, is interested in every level of what happens in our lives, and being that Christ’s first miracle was to make sure the wine didn’t run out at a wedding reception, this is no stretch at all. In fact, I would go so far as to say He delights in these little things in our lives. After all, he made us for fellowship with Him, why wouldn’t He be founder of the feast?

[Thanks goes out especially to all you who emailed your comments and best wishes to Marti yesterday. It made her day!]