Have you heard the saying that people enter your life for a reason, for a season and for a lifetime? Do you believe it? Whether you believe it or not, every encounter provokes a reason; and the drama endures for a season. The memories dog your footsteps for a lifetime! One incredible telephone call forced me to ask myself: Is this a wrong number? Nothing prepared me for the twist of fate for which I have no definite answer.

Meditation propels an individual to heights sublime or plunges one to profound depths. During one meditation, I emerged perplexed.

“Behold I will do a new thing.”

God gave me seven words. Where could I find them?  What new thing did he plan? I considered myself a Bible scholar.  Was I a Bible scholar? Why were the seven words unfamiliar to me?

No matter how often one reads the Bible, it offers something new every time you open it or hear its words. Reading the Bible takes two basic forms.  Systematic reading employs a method I have used in the past. Begin in Genesis and read through to Revelation.  When I read the Bible through seven times in one year I had to vary the system. One time I began in John. Another time I read from Revelation to Genesis. I have also read the books of the Bible in alphabetical order. However, most systematic Bible reading details the  chapters to be read on each day of the year; and it is followed as written in the schedule.

Random Bible reading demands moving away from what others expect and allowing the Holy Spirit to direct the steps. When my sister and I rose for early morning [5:00 a.m.] worship, she and I expounded a Bible text, often quite different.  But, some mornings, we received the exact same text or chapter. At other times, the scripture chosen was a marginal or related text. What proved interesting and made us laugh is the fact that we did not confer with each other!

God warned me that he would do a new thing. My sister used her Strong’s Concordance but could not locate the text. Finally, I asked God to give me a clue.

“Isaiah”, He said.

My sister found the text in Isaiah 43: 19. Little did I know the ‘new thing’ God had in store for me. We analyzed the entire chapter, so sharing it proved easy. Debbie, an Associate Pastor and friend benefitted immediately as she called my sister often. When my friend Leah informed me that her father had died, I encouraged her using Isaiah 43:19. God would provide for the funeral expenses. A few days later, she called again and expressed thanks jubilantly. God had made a road in the financial wilderness for her and her family. The rivers in the desert flowed with His goodness, mercy and love.

Another telephone call announced the new thing.  First, I was busy and needed to complete the task that night. No Carla lived at my address. Somehow, my communications skills proved inadequate for every time I ended the call, the phone rang again. One way to solve the problem was to unplug the telephone or give it a busy signal until I had completed the work. But, suddenly, I got a better idea. The next time the young man called, I would ask him a simple question. No doubt, my plan caused God to laugh! He told me that he was going to do a new thing. Why was I so deaf? Whenever he called again, I would be ready!

He called again; and I was ready.

“Do you know Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour?” I asked, expecting no answer.

Surely he would hang up the telephone and not call again! Then, I would be able to work in peace. As soon as he answered, I knew that God was initiating a new thing. The young man was hungering and thirsting for righteousness! Could I leave him starving for the gospel?

After finding a comfortable seat and two Bibles, I settled down for the long haul. Since I am a good listener with the ministry gift of exhortation, I allowed him to pour out his heart. The young man, based on his account, had experienced addictions in his past. Now, in his distress, he recognized his need for God.

He knew some Bible texts and shared them, inviting me to comment. Did I have a Bible text to share with him?

“What number did you dial?” I asked hoping that it was the wrong number. Maybe he had switched some digits. Besides, God knew that no Carla lived at my address. When the young man told me the number he had dialed –my own - cold waves swept over me from the crown of my head to the sole of my feet! How could this be happening to me?

Well, I directed him to Isaiah 43. We studied verses 1-5; then we studied them again! Yes, I had conducted a Literature of the Bible course; but I had never used the telephone to study the Bible with a stranger. My number was unlisted. How did he get my number? I asked him a second time during our conversation. What number had he dialed? The number he gave was mine!

Finally, my brother informed me that my sister had been trying to reach me by telephone for at least an hour; so I figured it must be urgent. After we had completed the discussion of Isaiah 43:21, the young man prayed and we ended the conversation.

I contacted my sister and explained what had happened to me. She looked at the drama positively because she knew that I can live without a telephone! Even today, I regard a cell phone as a luxury item rather than a necessity. However, it serves as a handy gadget during an emergency.

When I reflect on the ‘new thing’ God did for me I thank Him and conclude confidently that His ways are not my ways; and His thoughts are superior to mine. His novelty had a reason. God is able to supersede human expectations. The season lasted long enough to meet the needs of a desperate young man and direct him to other resources. As for the lifetime, how can I forget the young man who called the right number- my own- with the wrong name?