The world is indebted to English author Horace Walpole, who in a letter dated January 28, 1754, wrote that "this discovery, indeed, is almost of that kind which I call Serendipity, a very expressive word." Walpole formed the word on an old name for Sri Lanka, Serendip. He explained that this name was part of the title of "a silly fairy tale, called The Three Princes of Serendip: as their highnesses traveled, they were always making discoveries, by accidents and sagacity, of things which they were not in quest of...."
Serendipity. Mr. Webster defines it as "an aptitude for making desirable discoveries." While I know I scored high when I took the Scholastic Aptitude Test, I have no idea whether that has to do with the fact that a lot of my most desirable discoveries were pretty much accidental. I remember sticking my index finger into a lamp shade socket hoping I'd light up like a bulb! That was how I discovered the power of electricity! I'm not saying being electricuted is cute and desirable...but it was a discovery resulting from an accident.
I love "Aha!" moments! (That's one of the many reasons why I majored in journalism, and dreamt of joining the media three-fourths of my college life!) "Aha!" moments- they provide occasional flare to an almost 30-year-old man's close-to-boring life!
Serendipity is not the same as coincidence. There are no coincidences.
Or is it? If it is, then there are no seredipities either. I don't think they're the same. There are serendipities, but there are no coincidences. Each of us has had times when we have been struck by the oddness of events in our lives. An unexpected visit or a chance meeting connects us with people we haven't been in touch with for many years; we apply for a job and discover the interviewer knows a mutual friend. These incidents happen to us often, and we often say, "What a coincidence!" But there are no coincidences.
Our lives can be determined by our free choices. We can, and often do, base them on what's best for us or for others who love us. God expects us to do that. But many times we wonder, "What does God want me to do?" It is as if there was only one choice to make, and we have to be certain to make the correct one or fail. God is not like that. God leads us to choices and frequently there are several to choose from, all equally right in accordance with God's plan. This is because God's plan will prevail.
there are no coincidences. It is never by luck or chance that we stumble into the Divine plan. We know that God has been at work in each of us from the moment we were formed in our mother's womb, even before that. Each of us is called to the same place, to a community being saved where we work out our own salvation. Each of us is given gifts to complement that community, and every one of us has a part in the story.
So, it's not who we meet, or what job we take, or who we marry that matters. These are choices God gives to us. But surrounding all the choices is the framework of God's plan for salvation, a plan that will be carried out with our involvement.
There are no coincidences. Every encounter with someone, each connection we find, is part of our being connected with the God that made us. Let us resolve this year to look forward to meeting God in the people we meet. Let us remember to seek and serve Christ in all persons. And let us rejoice that in doing so we are participating in the plan God has for each of us, the plan that will one day bring us home.
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