Whenever my father experiences a coincidence or serendipitous happening, he calls it a "God wink". Sometimes as God speaks to us through these God winks, He uses them as a way to affirm, validate, or draw our attention to the stirrings of His inner voice. The experience will instantly resonate with a Christian's inner spirit, speaking its message directly into their heart.

Matthew 10:20 – For it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. (NIV)

Recently, I was caught up in a God wink experience. One Sunday morning in mid-April, the inspiration and subject matter for a new devotional swept over me, sending me to my keyboard. By nightfall, I had prepared a submission I called Sticks and Stones. The next morning, I opened my e-mail, and the bold text of the day's devotional read Sticks And Stones. What was going on? I hadn't sent mine anywhere last night, had I? Momentary confusion muddled my thoughts as I scrolled down to read the body of the text. "Sticks and stones will break my bones …" It was the same introduction. But selections aren't published that quickly; there is a refining process, editing, scheduling. As I read further, the words became unfamiliar to me, although the theme was similar: words can hurt, so show kindness through your actions.

Later that same day, I shared the Sticks and Stones God wink experience with my sister. What my sister said in response to this Sticks and Stones story was remarkable. The sermon given at her church that Sunday was titled Sticks and Stones, and the theme was kindness through words and deeds.

1 Corinthians 3:10 – These are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. (NIV)

God was using His people to spread His message of love, both corporately and personally. God's corporate message repeated throughout each of the Sticks and Stones versions, urges us all to walk in love. The God wink part of the Sticks and Stones stories speaks a loving and personal message directly to the hearts of those involved in penning and delivering the words: keep listening; God is using you.

Christians truly are God's ambassadors here on earth. Our actions and words do matter. The God of the Bible is actively using His followers to spread His message today. We are part of His ongoing story to humanity. Keep watching and listening, and may God wink at you, too!

Prayer: Heavenly Father, we thank You for giving us spiritual eyes and ears to help us as we go about Your work. Help us to grow confident and proficient in their use. Thank You for using each of us in unique ways to carry out Your work here on earth. Thank You for speaking to us directly and personally, in ways that we know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that they are messages from You. Thank You for using God winks as one method of communicating Your messages of affirmation, love, comfort, guidance, and unity to Your people. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.

Forward this devotional     Share on Facebook

About the author:

Jackie Blanchard <jackie.blanchard@hotmail.ca>
London, Ontario, Canada
Send your feedback to the author