An Amazing Coincidence! Not Really.
On the day that Jo and I arrived for the first time in the Brazilian town nearest the Canela village, I had an experience that reminded me of the story in Acts Chapter 8.
There an angel tells the apostle Philip to stop preaching in Samaria and walk south to the road that runs down from Jerusalem to the Gaza the port city. So, Philip takes about two days to cover the 65 kilometres to reach that 80-kilometres-long, east-west road to the coast.
What Are the Chances?
At the very moment Philip reaches the intersection a chariot comes rattling along with an Ethiopian official who is reading out loud Isaiah’s prophecy about Jesus. Philip starts a conversation and leads the man to faith in Jesus, baptizes him, and the official goes on his way to evangelize his home country.
What are the chances of Philip arriving at that intersection exactly when the chariot goes by? That was no coincidence! That was planned by God–a God-incidence.
Our First God-incidence
After travelling for several days Jo and I had at last arrived at the house of a missionary friend. I was feeling hot and sweaty after carrying baggage from the Jeep to the house. I stepped out the front door and stood at the top of the steps to cool off in the breeze. Below me, a wide pate ran from the forest past the house towards town. Seconds later, Jim, our host, came out to join me. He immediately grabbed my shoulder and said, “Jack, look over there!” A dozen men, women, and children were coming out of the jungle to walk the track to town. “Jack, look, those people are Canelas! They’re the people you and Jo will translate the Bible for! They just walked seventy kilometres down from their village.”
My First View of Canelas
Wow! He had my attention! I focused hard on the group passing by below.
Five men carried muzzle-loading shotguns. All had baskets on their backs, held with a strap across the forehead. A few women carried babies; others carried similar baskets like the men. The men wore shorts and the women wore only a piece of coloured cloth from waist to knees. Some near-naked children and a few dogs completed the group.
My Prayer of of Commitment
I could not take my eyes off them as I silently prayed, “Lord of the harvest, you brought Jo and me here to bring these Canela people your Word in their language. Please fill us with Your love for them. May they accept us to live with them in their villages. Help us to learn their language and customs, and may those little kids someday hold your Holy Book in their hands, read it in their own language, and follow you. I don’t care what it costs or how long it takes; just use Jo and me to bring these people to know you through your Word.”
As Jim and I walked back to the house, I said, “I love how God planned this coincidence, with them coming out of the jungle just as I stood here, and then you coming out to identify them for me.”
The Second God-incidence
In the morning I walked to town to meet the Canelas, and the first Canela person I met in the market area just happened to be the chief of the Canela village. Another God-incidence! We spoke in Portuguese, our understanding aided with lots of gestures.
“Will you teach us to read and write?” he asked making scribbling motions.
“Yes, we will.”
“Will you give medicine?” he asked as he made pricking motions in his upper arm.
“Yes, we will give pills and injections to sick people.”
“Good, then, you come and live in my village.”
Later that day a friend introduced me to the local government official of the Serviço de Proteção aos Índios (SPI) “Indian Protection Service” in his office on the edge of town.
“This is Jack Popjes; he and his wife are Canadians and are fully trained linguists and literacy teachers. He and his wife and three small daughters would like to move into a Canela village to begin learning the language.” After we had shaken hands, the SPI director said he was glad to have us working among the Canelas.
I thanked the director, and added, “My wife and I have had some medical training, and we are prepared to do some basic medical work if we are needed.”
The Third God-incidence
“Very good,” the director said. “There is an SPI manager’s house located on the edge of the Canela village. The manager, however, has just been transferred and the house is vacant. So, you’re welcome to stay there for the next six months if you wish.”
Wow! Yes we did!
The Lord of the Harvest had arranged His third God-incidence to give us a perfect start for our first work session among the Canela people. We lived in the house God had provided for the full six-month session.
This is an excerpt from the memoir of the Canela decades that Jo and I are currently writing and revising. I’ll be sharing more God-incidences over the next few months.