My wife and I traveled to Cocoa Beach for a four day, three night vacation. The hotel bill was paid by the company who wanted us to come see their timeshare program. I should have seen the shark fin cutting the surface of the water regarding the Timeshare meeting.

I’m sure timeshare is good for someone because so many people buy them, and some people even have multiple timeshares. The timeshare program doesn’t work for me. The first hour and a half of the meeting was interesting, touring the resort, learning about the company, and all the places we could visit. Beyond that, it was an uphill struggle.

The agent absolutely declared that they were not hard sell, as they led me, many times, right around my “no” to return to their pitch. They weren’t hard sell, but they didn’t understand “no” with an explanation, “no” with an affirmation, “no” with incredulity that we were saying it again, and many other forms of “no” until I demanded to see the manager. Then I was only required to say “no” emphatically, with dramatization and clear facial expression, to the manager and the next person who was supposed to arrange for our hotel credit. All my self image of being courteous was completely exhausted, and I was facing my raw, most irritable self.

We headed out to get some lunch. We had been at the timeshare place for three hours. I was hungry and frustrated. Tona saw a restaurant on an app that looked good. I chanced upon the same one. The confirmation clinched it. We were off to Southern Charm in Cocoa Beach. It truly lived up to its name. The owner welcomed everyone as though he had personally invited them into his home. The food was fabulous.

A woman in the next table overheard some of our comments and started a conversation. She was a Christian with a beautiful relationship with Christ. Tona and I joined her and spent the next hour or two in fellowship. By the time we finished talking, we could have walked on water because we felt so light and cheered up. We found out that she was down because she was facing health issues. Only the Lord would put two frustrated, struggling people together for them to cheer each other up.

We found out that she was riding the bus and hadn’t planned to stop at Southern Charm. She pulled the bus stop wire without thinking. Our meeting had been choreographed. We also found out that her grandfather had my birthday, and her grandmother had Tona’s birthday (same birthdays, but not the same age). There were other of those “divine coincidences,” convincing us that Jesus was working on our attitude and outlook. Our outlooks and perspectives had been completely transformed. I had gone from exhausted irritability to rested and peaceful.

Faith is an eye opener. It allows us to see that we have a loving Father who is always at work for us and our healing. Sometimes He just makes a point of letting us see it so that we don’t forget when we don’t see it. Jesus models what faithfulness and loving kindness really looks like.