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Article: What of Miracles?
By Joseph Wood

Generally thought of as a religious subject, the subject of miracles for most is closely tied to the subject of the Supreme Being, whatever name He may be called. My purpose in writing this is to think logically upon the subject, and conclude how miracles can and do occur even in the twenty first century. Also I will include a discussion of when they occur, and what may cause them.

We must begin by defining the word “miracle”. Merriam Webster gives three distinct definitions:

1 : An extraordinary event manifesting divine intervention in human affairs

2 : An extremely outstanding or unusual event, thing, or accomplishment

3 : Christian Science : A divinely natural phenomenon experienced humanly as the fulfillment of spiritual law

Notice one of the definitions excludes any mention of divine influence. I will focus my thoughts on the two definitions that do mention divine influence.

It is recorded in scripture that miracles of the divine nature occurred in the past. Many were done by the Savior Himself, but there were several done by others, so you apparently do not have to be deity to perform a miracle. Also it appears from the past record that almost anyone can receive one. Anyone who has some sort of need, at least.

So we know that miracles occurred then, but do they occur now? If you have experienced one then you know the answer is “yes”. If you are hoping for one that you have not yet received, then you may be less sure. If you need one desperately, then the subject becomes of utmost importance.

Do miracles occur now? Well where did they come from before, and is that source still available? We believe that they came from God, by whatever name we call Him. For miracles to still occur now, God would have to still be there causing them as He did in the past. Problem is, not too many of us have heard from Him recently, at least not directly. So the real question of whether miracles occur now really boils down to the question, is God still there?

The scripture records that he is an unchangeable God, and that His course is one eternal round. Given this, if He is still there, then miracles will still come. The scriptures of the past record that the unbelief of men could stop miracles from occurring. That would still be true today. The conclusion is that those who do not believe in miracles are not likely to receive one.

In the world of the senses and Newtonian Physics, we say that Seeing is Believing. But in the real world, which includes the spiritual world and the world of quantum physics, we find that things get reversed. In the Spiritual world, Believing is Seeing. The quantum physics world is very hard to figure out because seeing is messing up the experiment. (The observer effect).

So miracles fall into the Believing is Seeing category, which also means that not believing is not seeing. That said, there is some scripture that will help us understand what is going on. The Lord once said “If men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness; I give unto men weakness that they may be humble . . .”. The ‘come unto me’ part is the believing part, it means simply believing in God and showing faith through obedience to that belief. The Lord responds by showing us our weakness. Why would He need to do that? The Rosicrucians state that “the man who knows his ignorance has taken the first step towards knowledge.” In that same vein, the man or woman who has discovered their weakness has taken the first step towards the increased success that will come when weakness becomes strength.

I will describe it another way. There comes a point in most everyone’s life where they are presented with an opportunity to let God direct their life in a more direct fashion. If you were driving a car it would be like you switched places and decided to let God drive for a while. Many are afraid to do that, because they do not trust God’s driving. It is not a surprise, because those who have been through the experience know that our limited perspective will not perceive the road that God puts us on at first. From our point of view the first thing that happens when we give God the steering wheel is that he steers us right into the wall!

And when we hit the wall, our weakness is revealed; and we begin to perceive the miracle that will be required to make that particular weakness a strength. The end of the earlier scripture is as follows: “For if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them”. Despite the fact that the conclusion to the story comes in the short space of only one verse, the experience of it is somewhat different. Specifically there is a delay before the miracle comes that makes the weakness a strength.

If is of the time frame of the delay that I wish to speak further. The biggest problem with the delay is that it is for an unknown amount of time, time during which our revealed weakness is still a thorn in our side. During this time we prove to ourselves whether we will humble ourselves before God, and whether we will believe in Him. Of course the entire situation is proof of His existence, but we typically do not see it that way. While we are at it, we will find that almost all occurrences that we first see as afflictions, are revealed as to what they really are, which is blessings trying to fight their way into our lives. Blessings have to fight their way in because we do not let them in, so they use a transport mechanism called an affliction.

It is this time frame where we have an opportunity to prove to ourselves that we really have faith, plus there are several lessons in the experience that we are to learn. As soon as we have learned the lessons and demonstrated faith, the miracle comes and the weakness is now a strength. With our new found strength, we can attract greater success and prosperity into our lives.

When does the miracle occur? If we take history as any guide, the answer is at the last possible moment! Sometimes the wait can seem to be agonizingly long. In the scriptures we read about Joseph the son of Jacob who was sold into Egypt by his brothers and later falsely imprisoned. He stayed in that prison for two years. I imagine that after about a few weeks he felt pretty abandoned. After a few months he probably wondered why God allowed this to happen to him. After all he had been righteous! After about a year he interpreted the dreams of the butler and the baker, and asked the butler to tell his lord the Pharaoh about Joseph, which the butler immediately forget to do. The entire second year of the prison time occurred because the butler forgot him. It seems clear that during that second year that Joseph was humbled, and as he began to wait upon the Lord with greater and greater patience, his conditions within the prison were gradually improved.

But the Lord knew when the right time was for Joseph to appear, and it was the night after Pharaoh’s dream of the cows and the corn. Had Joseph appeared earlier, he would have likely been released from prison, but he would not have had any opportunity to become second in command in all of Egypt. Yes the Lord knew the proper time frame, and Joseph appeared just at the right time to interpret the Pharaoh’s dream, and because he was in the right place at the right time, he did become second in command in all Egypt, and he used that authority to save his entire family from the famine that came seven years later.

If we can find the patience and the faith to wait upon our miracle, then we will enable the Lord to bring it to us at exactly the right time, and we will be dazzled by the results. If we force the issue, then we will receive a lesser blessing, and will not be all that we could have been.

So my conclusion is this. If you have given the Lord the steering wheel, or if in the near future you plan to do so, and you are now or very soon in the “waiting period”. Please know that you are on a journey that few ever have the opportunity to bring to completion. The longer that you can hold out in faith, the greater spiritual strength that you will obtain by so doing. When you perceive the affliction, simply ask it what it is there to teach you. Do not be afraid of the lesson. When all seems lost, be grateful from what you have already found. When the future seems dark, think upon the past light that has been shown to you. Most important of all, when the inspiration comes to take a specific action, do it!, and do it now!

This entire thing is an exercise about joy. Many of us do not know what it truly is. Joy is the best measure of success. Bringing Joy to others is the best measure of even greater success. Miracles always bring freedom and joy, and so we would do well to seek them at every opportunity. The Lord said “Not as the world giveth give I unto you. . . “. His gifts are supreme, and they can be purchased without money and without price. When He said “go forth in faith”, He knew that in so doing you would journey to joy. Test the theory, and rejoice in the final results!

Joseph

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