Introduction:
1. This question is a fruitful faith-building exercise.
2. Though hard to pinpoint God’s specific ways of providing for our needs, there is no doubt He works to promote our good (Romans 8:28ff; Philippians 4:19).
Discussion:
I. Providence Defined
A. Provide: from Latin providere, meaning to foresee.
B. The Greek term is pronoia, meaning forethought; occurs twice in the NT (Acts 24:2; Romans 13:14).
C. The concept, however, saturates the Scriptures.
II. General Providence
A. With the above in view, the concept has to do with God’s provision for humanity’s good.
B. Most often, providence is used to describe His caring for material needs in non-miraculous ways.
C. In one sense, his overall provisions for every living thing on the earth can be called providence (Genesis 1:1-31; Psalms 104:14; Matthew 5:45; Acts 14:17).
D. However, this is not the focus of this question.
III. Special Providence
A. God’s care for His people clearly goes beyond the general into special provisions for their good (Psalms 37:23; Proverbs 3:6; Matthew 6:33; Romans 8:28).
B. There are some important principles we must keep in mind concerning these matters.
1. We must first recognize that the overarching goal is our spiritual welfare above and beyond our physical welfare (Romans 8:28-39).
2. Sometimes these ends are best provided by material hardship, rather than material prosperity (Romans 5:3-5; James 1:2-4; 1 Peter 1:6-7).
3. We must avoid thinking good material circumstances equal blessings while bad ones equal lack thereof (Job 21:7-13; Psalms 73:3-12).
4. Jesus defined the limits of material providence assured all who pursue the kingdom first as life’s necessities (Matthew 6:33).
5. The ultimate providence of God is the ability to prevail spiritually (Romans 8:35-39; 1 Corinthians 10:12-13; 1 Peter 5:6-10; Revelation 1-22).
IV. Identifying Providence
A. Though we all would like to be able to pinpoint precisely when God has moved things to bring about specific ends for us, it is not really possible.
B. Consider some inspired biblical examples of this:
1. Mordecai knew the Jews would be delivered and hoped it would be through Esther, but he could not know (Esther 4:14).
2. Paul had an inkling that Onesimus was parted from Philemon to become a blessing to both, but the best he could say by inspiration was, “perhaps.”
Conclusion:
1. So, while I would love to offer a key to know when and how God provides for us in the day-to-day matters of life, the best we can find in Scripture is the general arc.
2. We know that in the ultimate sense, if we love Him and pursue His program, He provides everything we need to succeed (Matthew 6:33; Romans 8:28; Philippians 4:19; 2 Peter 1:3).
3. As for specific incidents, the most we can say is, “perhaps this is why…”
Further Food for Thought
1. Do you ever look back on puzzling life events and think, now I see what He was doing?
2. Do you ever wonder how, in the absence of breaching natural law, God moves things now?
3. How comforting is it to know that, though we may not be able to pinpoint special providence, we can rest at ease knowing He will always provide a way for us?