NEIGHBORS

Things happen.

We’ve lived in our neighborhood for almost three years, and for the first two, our mail and packages kept getting misdelivered. It didn’t matter if it was by USPS, UPS, FedEx, or Amazon. Granted, our neighborhood wasn’t located on Google Maps, which was part of the problem. A few of our packages were delivered to the subdivision a mile up the road, never to be seen because the receivers decided they could use $80 worth of wild bird food and dog food.

Another factor was the city decided to name the parallel streets in our subdivision by the same name, with the only difference being Street, Court, and Place. We soon found out our new neighbors on the next street had the same house number as ours, which added to the delivery confusion because their address was identical except for Court instead of Street. This delivery circus is how we met John and Carol.

A careful glance at the homeowner’s names and addresses revealed the problem, and we spent a year and a half delivering misdelivered mail and packages, and redirecting guests to each other’s homes. In the process, we became friends and enjoy each other’s company as part of our extended Christian fellowship.

We’ve told many people the story of our mail and package switcharoos and chalk it up to divine intervention because none of us believe in chance. The errant deliveries have nearly ceased, but our friendship with John and Carol, developed while working out the kinks, made it worth all the trouble.

God is in control.

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Rom. 8:28

Reflection: Recall a time when something good came from an inconvenience. What purpose was served? Did you recognize the role God played in the circumstances?