Cause and Effect

I've noticed a pattern in the way God seems to work. When one is prompted that something needs to be accomplished and he is in it, if one fails to respond, the thing does not happen. Or perhaps is done by another. But if the effort and creativity and resources are expended, often the thing happens but not as a result of those investments. The answer comes from a completely different quarter. It would seem this might be God's way of showing us that he is involved. That the answer came from him. By this he tenderly reveals himself to us in a subtle yet powerful way and gains glory for himself in our souls. I was thinking of this after reading something from Charles Spurgeon yesterday:

“We use the means, but the blessing does not spring from the means. We dig a well, but heaven fills it with rain. The horse is prepared against the day of battle, but safety is of the Lord. The means are connected with the end, but they do not of themselves produce it.”