Sunday’s Blessing – 07/19/2026 – Coincidence or Confluence?
Years ago, I worked with a guy who loved words as much as I do. We used to challenge each other to find words we had never heard before. One of the words he introduced me to was confluence. It is used to describe the place where two rivers join together, for example. It can be applied to any two or more things becoming one as they move toward their appointed place.
Life is like this. It a constant coming together of things as we navigate our paths. Confluence describes a graceful coming together, which builds momentum to create a more powerful force capable of doing so much more than either could do alone. Synergy is often used to describe this by using the phrase “the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.” However, when things come together, it’s not always a wonderful result. One other word my coworker introduced to me was cacophony. This word defines the sound you hear before an orchestra begins playing the symphony. Each member is getting their instruments warmed up, or tuned, or reviewing a particular phrase of the music. It’s an unpleasant sound filled with dissonance and confusion until the conductor calls them to attention. Under his direction, what was once a cacophony becomes a beautiful confluence of sound which moves the listeners to emotional bliss.
I saw a movie recently which illustrated this confluence of life in a very creative way. The title was “The Map of Tiny Perfect Things.” In similar fashion to Groundhog Day, a teen finds himself living the same day over and over, trying to understand the cause, and eventually, the solution to get out of the loop of time. Unlike Groundhog Day, this young man discovers someone else living in this repetitive cycle. Together, they work at cracking the code to get them back to their usual lives.
By taking a thought the young man shared with her, the young lady embarks on her own to discover the mystery which holds them in this repetitive experience. Several significant events had been logged by the young man who knew they held some significance. The young lady found the dependence the seemingly independent acts came together to form a map. There wasn’t one big reason for the endless cycle, but instead it was many “tiny perfect things” which came together to show them what would eventually bring “tomorrow”.
This is a remarkable way to picture how life is to be lived. In a single moment it is sometimes impossible to see how this will ever shape the future or become a mile post which would one day lead others to a better future. The young lady eventually completed the “map” and the two sojourners finally reached “tomorrow”.
So often I hear people speak of coincidences which seem to just “happen” in life, not realizing these could actually be part of God’s confluence in our life. Never treat an experience as meaningless or insignificant, because what may seem like the onset of cacophony, you could be on the brink of a time of confluence which could propel you forward to your destiny. In essence, life is simply a “Map of Tiny Perfect Things.”
