Today, technologies like Facebook connect people in ways few could have ever imagined. In some extraordinary cases, those ways seem to be aided by some unseen force...

Lael Kershaw Boyd of Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina, wasn't getting the joy out of decorating for Christmas this year. Her mother had passed away in March, and she was missing her terribly. Lael took a break and went on Facebook.

"With a name like 'Lael,' I’m always excited and interested when I hear or learn of another Lael," she told us. "Where did 'that' Lael get her name?"

That day, she searched for Lael and found one living about about 45 minutes away. She messaged her, never expecting to hear back. But she did:

For two people with the same name to find each other on Facebook isn't amazing on its own. But to find the one that was named after you? And what are the chances that the younger Lael would share the story of meeting the other Lael's mother, at the exact moment when the other Lael was missing her mom so much?

A gift from God indeed.

Congratulations to Laurie Savage, winner of the last giveaway of 2010. Laurie will receive the 2010 edition of His Mysterious Ways!

Merry Christmas everyone! I'll be back in the New Year to share more incredible stories of providence, serendipity and kismet that we call Mysterious Ways.