Before I retired, my office was a cubicle. The top of the cubicle wall was about 5' high. People passing by could see over it, and stop and talk. Others liked to just come in, spend awhile chatting and then leave. I use the words “talk” and “chatting” but what I really mean is interrupting. And I hated to be interrupted! While much has been said on the positive side about multi-tasking, I prefer to give my attention to the details one at a time. The problem with that is that the people who interrupted me are real people with real lives and I just couldn’t ignore them. Does the Bible have anything to say about this? Yes it does! Today, let’s listen to an episode from Mark’s gospel that took place early in Jesus’ earthly ministry:

There were so many people coming and going that Jesus and his disciples didn't even have time to eat. So he said to them, “Let us go off by ourselves to some place where we will be alone and you can rest a while.” So they started out in a boat by themselves to a lonely place. Many people, however, saw them leave and knew at once who they were; so they went from all the towns and ran ahead by land and arrived at the place ahead of Jesus and his disciples. When Jesus got out of the boat, he saw this large crowd, and his heart was filled with pity for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began to teach them many things. (Mark 6:31-34)

The events in today’s passage took place during a busy time for Jesus and His disciples. In fact, they were so busy, Mark said they didn’t even have time to stop for a meal! So Jesus said, “Let us go off by ourselves to some place where we will be alone and you can rest a while.” In today’s story, the only time the disciples got to be alone with Jesus was in a boat. And then, as soon as they got back to shore, they were interrupted again by the crowd. How did Jesus respond? Let’s listen to it again: “When Jesus got out of the boat, he saw this large crowd, and his heart was filled with pity for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began to teach them many things.” Jesus and his disciples’ experience—and my experience as well—is that most ministry happens as a divine appointment. During these “chance” encounters, often at the store, someone will mention that they’re tired because they have been taking care of their aging mother. Or they’re worried about their son or their wife who recently lost a job. Over the years, I’ve found that God often takes these unexpected encounters and then uses us to reach out and touch hurting people. Today, as you go about your daily tasks, perhaps you’ll meet people who unexpectedly bump into you. Be ready; those just might be divine appointments that God has prepared for you. Those appointments might not be on your calendar, but they're on God's calendar...and that is very Good News!