1 Samuel 10

1 Samuel 10

Calvin: was also on his way to Italy when he experienced God’s control of his path. In Italy he hoped to find freedom from Roman Catholic oppression & leisure to continue his writing. The road was closed because of the war between France & Italy, so he decided to make a detour through Geneva. There he met William Farel(not Will Ferrell), who with fiery eloquence demanded that Calvin stay in Switzerland. Impressed with Farel’s earnestness, Calvin complied, & the cause of the Reformation owes much to his decision. 5. Abraham Lincoln: one day he was rummaging through a barrel of odds & ends, he came across a copy of Lord Blackstone’s Commentaries(on British jurisprudence). This “chance” discovery awakened his interest in law & human rights. As a result he ran for political office & eventually played a decisive role in the history of our country. 6. George Whitefield: was employed by his brother in the Bell Inn but could not get along with his brother’s wife, so he gave up his job & went to Bristol. Then step by step he went to Oxford, met with the Wesley’s, & developed a ministry that touched countless thousands of lives on both sides of the Atlantic. Whitefield was perhaps the greatest preacher of his time. Providence happens! A shift change at work; suicides overridden; a glass of water; a road detour; The effect of 1 book; dealing with a tough sister in law, each showing again that God’s Sovereignty is evidenced in His remarkable Providence! These seemingly chance contacts & events have literally altered the course of history! How encouraging for each of us to see God’s involvement in the seemingly little things in our lives also! F.B.