EVERYTHING’S A MIRACLE OR NOTHING IS

Miracles occur around us every day. But, we often miss them because we’re too focused on the world.

Every morning my husband and I share time together over coffee. Many mornings we simply sit together enjoying the sunrise, lost in our own thoughts. Sometimes, however, we share moments of pure revelation.

This morning was one of those, and I felt inspired to share it.

We were talking about the miracles we’ve witnessed in our lives. Our daughter’s complete healing from cancer. My recovery journey and how God lifted me completely from that darkness. And so many others.

In a few weeks, we’ll be celebrating 35 years of marriage. That’s a miracle, too. We’ve overcome so many trials that could have destroyed us. But, by the grace of God, we survived. Not only did we grow individually, but we grew together.

Truthfully, the miracles we’ve experienced have strengthened our faith and our commitment to each other in ways we never imagined.

What is a miracle?

Merriam-Webster defines a miracle as a surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divine agency.

That divine agency is God. We are not meant to explain it; we are meant to receive it.

Too often, however, we get wrapped up in the world. We look to the world for answers to the unexplainable and overlook the miraculous happening all around us.

In this mindset, we limit our understanding and our perspective. Consequently, we focus on the concrete instead of the miraculous.

We either see everything as a miracle, or we see no miracles at all.

Rising every day is a miracle. The breath in our lungs and the life in our bodies are miracles too.

Every time we get behind the wheel and make it safely to our destination, it is a miracle. We’ll never know what perils we escaped on our journey.

These are simple and often overlooked works of wonder that happen to us daily.

Then, there are the miracles that stand out. So much so that we cannot escape the higher power interceding on our behalf.

In 2018, Hurricane Michael ripped through our home in the Florida panhandle. A monster category five storm, Michael delivered catastrophic destruction across the area.

The damage was devastating. For weeks we were without power, water, and cell service. Cut off from the world, we struggled to survive.

We had to rely on the kindness of others. We had to dig deep to find the strength to exist in this new and dramatically altered world we found ourselves in.

We came together as families, neighbors, and a community to assist each other and those who had lost everything.

That alone was miraculous on a community level. The miracles were more profound on a personal level.

I was just six months into my recovery journey at that time. I could have so easily slipped back into those behaviors that provided an escape. There was so much to escape from.

Instead, I prayed daily for God’s guidance and asked for the strength to persist. And you know what? He provided it. Without fail.

The miracle of continued healing during one of the most difficult times I’d ever faced strengthened my resolve.

Rather than relying on my limited understanding and strength, I relied on God. I trusted that He’d fulfill His promise of peace and prosperity if I stayed out of His way.

It was a miracle that I was able to move forward instead of slipping backward. From that miracle, my family witnessed the changes God had orchestrated in me in ways I’d never be able to describe in words. They began to believe that this time was different, that my recovery was indeed real.

And they welcomed the miracle.

Everything is a miracle, or nothing is.

God has power over all creation. There’s nothing He cannot do.

From the moment we’re born, God has mapped out the number of our days. Before we take our first breath, He knows the road before us.

He grants us free will, the opportunity to choose Him, and the opportunity to choose the world.

When we choose God, we see miracles everywhere. Creation itself is a miracle. We recognize God’s presence in things, both great and small.

We believe in the miracle of Christ’s birth, death, and resurrection. We believe as God calls us to, without question or needing tangible proof. We rely on faith to guide us.

When we rely on the world, we doubt everything. We rely on our own limited understanding. We look to science and to the tangible to sustain us.

We place our faith in things that are unsustainable, which is why we suffer. The harder we search for answers to the unanswerable, the more we lose hope and fall into despair.

Our very human desire for tangible proof weakens our faith.

In John | 16:33, Jesus reminds us, “I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have peace. In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

Jesus overcame the power of the flesh and the workings of the devil. He overcame death. He did this willingly, knowing He would suffer beyond anything we can imagine.

He laid Himself bear before the world in order to save the world.

The miracle of Christ’s resurrection ensures that there is indeed more than this world. Life, everlasting life, awaits us on the other side.

We can choose to believe, or we can choose to doubt. How we live and how we die is wrapped up in that choice.

So is our perspective. Through faith, we see miracles everywhere. Through doubt, we see no miracles at all.

I choose faith. Not simply because I’ve experienced miracles but because I believe.

I believe in God as my Father and in His only Son. I’ve never seen them, but I’ve seen the works of their hands and witnessed the power of their unconditional love all around me.

I could have never overcome my addiction without them. My husband and I would not be celebrating our 35th anniversary without their intercession. Our daughter would not be celebrating 8 years free from cancer without God’s healing.

I would not have awoken this morning, inspired to write these words, without God’s grace.

For me, everything is a miracle. I am humbled and grateful that God opened my eyes and heart to accept His mercy. He continues to strengthen me on this journey.

I could never have made it through the darkness without the miracle of His light, and I can never overcome the world without the miracle of His presence within me.

In times of trouble,

there is but one shelter from the storm.

In times of joy,

there is but one source

from which all goodness flows.

In times of doubt,

there is but one place

from which all miracles come.

There is a constant,

in this ever-changing world,

A place of unconditional love,

unrelenting mercy,

and unfathomable grace.

FAITH is hope in things to come,

and conviction in things unseen.

Faith is born of MIRACLES.

And so,

In FAITH, I bend.

In FAITH, I cry.

In FAITH, I heal.

In FAITH, I rise.

JN Fenwick (© 2024) | mothjournal14

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