Last week we kvelled about Hal Slifer’s visit to Ruach Israel and how much we enjoyed him and he us. We went on to noodle my Bible study experience of the Jewish attendees seeing Yeshua with new eyes, and touched on the miraculous times of the late ‘60s and ‘70s.

As part of that conversation in the Bible study group the subject of miracles generally came up. The inevitable statement by one person that miracles don’t happen in modern times opened up the group to share other perspectives on this point. I was even able to share my testimony which by its very nature demonstrates the reality of modern miracles!

Can we really doubt that miracles are still happening even in these days?!!

I have met those who don’t believe that the Bible stories are real, so for them this conversation is moot. They don’t believe in a force so great that it could be miraculous in the first place. Yet even among those who are strong believers in God, especially given our troubling times, it becomes difficult to think life is somehow miraculous.

Do you ever wonder how the Apostles could not grasp the reality that Yeshua is the Messiah even though they walked with Him and experienced His miracles? Some saw the water turn to wine, the uncountable healings, the rising back to life of the dead. Yet even they were not convinced Yeshua was the Son of God until His resurrection. So we can’t fault ourselves too much for disbelief in miracles.

Perhaps that is the point. It’s a bit like the chicken and the egg conundrum – which comes first? Do miracles make us believe or do we believe, and thus, see the miracles? I believe it is the latter.

If we awake in the morning with amazement that we are so blessed to be able to live another day, with awe of and faith in a Creator, if our world view is one of gratitude for all that is right rather than fear of all that is wrong, it becomes easy to see the miracles.  For when you live in that space, you are thankful that you can get out of bed, or if you can’t, that you are in a place of shelter, or if not, that the weather is temperate, or if not, that you can take a step, or if not, that there are those in your life who you can love, and who love you. Our ability to see the miraculous is directly related to our ability to be thankful for the little things, to recognize the blessing of being alive.

If that outlook is your starting point, if you can be in awe of the divine intricacy of the butterfly wing, you will recognize that all of our experiences are miraculous, for so is life, itself. Then, when you overlay a world view of knowing that our Creator cares about each and every hair on our heads, you will begin to feel His Presence walking with you through it all, good and bad. You will feel the power of living a miraculous life.

With that as the base, your ability to perceive His Presence intensifies. The unexplained “coincidences” become mountain top experiences, for you recognize these are not just random. Rather, you become able to see these as the clear orchestration of events by Him.

Then we have the “major” miracles we read about in the news – the Israeli Six Day war, for example, which exemplified so many inexplicable events that contributed to that victory –  the reality of miracles in these days becomes undeniable. The many well documented near death experiences and extreme rescues are other clear examples, not to mention some stories too bizarre to have any other explanation than miraculous.

We are living in miraculous times, as all times have been. Yet these are the days in which we are now living, and so, we are amazingly blessed to be able to experience them firsthand. If we change our attitude to gratitude, we become able to sense His Presence so powerfully. Our faith is strengthened. The change needed is in us, not Him, for God is constant, waiting for us to be able to really believe – in Him.

Life will have its ups and downs, society its challenges. Our Creator has the bigger picture. It’s enough for each of us to appreciate the “small” glimpses of His magnificence, and to share that GLORY with all!

Shabbat shalom.

Diane