Westminster Shorter Catechism #11:
Q. What are God’s works of providence?
A. God’s works of providence are, his most holy, wise, and powerful preserving and governing all his creatures, and all their actions.

So, history is just the story of God's providence. We regularly talk about what God did in the past, right? Well, wait a few seconds... 5... 4... 3... 2... 1... okay. Now that line you just read, is now in the past, isn't it? So the present is history in the making, and its just a matter of time before the future is history, too. Past, present, future - all providence.

How far does this providence go? Does it go right down to the details of our lives? The details of nature? Well, did you pick where you were going to be born? Did you pick the color of your skin? Did you pick your parents? No? Was it random? Well, we've already covered "random" haven't we.

A new friend asked me the other night, "What about a leaf falling from a tree?" I passed that along to my wife. She thought about it a moment and then admitted, "I suppose where a leaf falls, it will decompose. That could make a spot of ground more or less fertile. Later someone might plant a tomato there. They need food, they ask God for the tomato to grow, and He had already directed a leaf to fall there, decompose, and fertilize the ground for them. Yeah, I can see that."

When you pray, you believe in providence, don't you? You depend on it. You certainly hope that God will take sovereign control over this issue that is so important to you. You certainly hope that nothing can hinder Him.

Well, enough of the reasoning, let's look at Scripture. And, since I was just thinking of leaves, let's see how far providence extends into nature:

Remember Pharoah's dream? Joseph interpreted that there would be famine, a natural event. But he said, "The thing is fixed by God, and God will shortly bring it to pass." (Genesis 41:32)

Remember the plagues of Egypt:

And the LORD said to Moses, "Stretch forth your hand toward heaven, that there may be hail in all the land of Egypt, upon man and beast and every plant of the field, throughout the land of Egypt." Then Moses stretched forth his rod toward heaven; and the LORD sent thunder and hail, and fire ran down to the earth. And the LORD rained hail upon the land of Egypt; there was hail, and fire flashing continually in the midst of the hail, very heavy hail, such as had never been in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. The hail struck down everything that was in the field throughout all the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and the hail struck down every plant of the field, and shattered every tree of the field. Only in the land of Goshen, where the people of Israel were, there was no hail.

Exodus 9:22-26

"You have heard that it was said, "You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet your friends only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors do so? Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect."

Matthew 5:43-48

And in Lystra a certain man without strength in his feet was sitting, a cripple from his mother's womb, who had never walked. This man heard Paul speaking. Paul, observing him intently and seeing that he had faith to be healed, said with a loud voice, "Stand up straight on your feet!" And he leaped and walked. Now when the people saw what Paul had done, they raised their voices, saying in the Lycaonian language, "The gods have come down to us in the likeness of men!" And Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul, Hermes, because he was the chief speaker. Then the priest of Zeus, whose temple was in front of their city, brought oxen and garlands to the gates, intending to sacrifice with the multitudes. But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard this, they tore their clothes and ran in among the multitude, crying out and saying, "Men, why are you doing these things? We also are men with the same nature as you, and preach to you that you should turn from these useless things to the living God, who made the heaven, the earth, the sea, and all things that are in them, who in bygone generations allowed all nations to walk in their own ways. Nevertheless He did not leave Himself without witness, in that He did good, gave us rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness." And with these sayings they could scarcely restrain the multitudes from sacrificing to them.

Acts 14:8-18