Let us not be horrified at or judge harshly those who renounce the religious life because of external circumstances. I have seen some men run away and accidentally meet the emperor, tarry with him, go to live in his palace, and take food with him. I have watched seed that accidentally fell in to the ground bear much fruit again and again, though the opposite has also happened. I have seen someone go to a doctor for one kind of problem, and, because of that doctor's skill, be treated with an astringent and be cured of failing eyesight, for it often happens that very definite and lasting results emerge through chance rather than through the workings of prescience and planning. (John Climacus)

That John does not point to the hidden hand of angels or divine intent, but an emergence through chance is a bit surprising.

But I agree such emerging is at the heart of God's gift of freedom. In another context I recently read, "Chaos is order without predictability."

God has crafted an order in which we can have substantial confidence, but we ought not imagine we can control.

Our Creator God clearly wants to be surprised by our creativity, and not just ours but the fruits-of-freedom of the whole universe.

We are invited to engage this order with faith, hope, and love in a process of discovering and creating the beautiful, good, and true.