God in Retrospect

A friend of mine is a recovering drug addict. He's older, in his fifties. During the most recent years of his life, my friend has discovered a new relationship with God, and I am amazed at the vitality of his spirituality. He is very open about his history, having spent a year literally on the street, begging for money and getting by on drugs. But now, every moment of his day is spent in prayerful awareness of God's grace and love towards him. God rescued him from himself, and he is very aware of this. He told me today about how important it was for him to hear that despite his wayward lifestyle, God had been along beside him throughout it all. He said God was always there for me, and God was just waiting for me to notice and to give my life to him.

I think this is another valid way of placing God in our lives, by reflecting on the past and making sense of it through a knowledge of God's providential love, presence and patience. Is this "writing God into history?" Yes, it is. But I don't think it's untrue. At least not if you're willing to admit that the story is provisional--the end is not yet complete and you might just find out that God had other intentions. So, I guess a little humility is in order.