Still a God of Miracles

“And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified. He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay.” – Matthew 28:5-6

Previous to these verses, the Bible records that an angel rolled away the stone that blocked the entrance to Jesus’ tomb, and then sat upon the rock. The rock was not rolled away to allow Jesus an opening by which to leave, but rather it was open so that anyone could look inside and see that the body of Jesus was no longer there. Upon viewing the empty tomb, the onlooker could then go and testify that the tomb no longer contained the body of Christ.

Interestingly enough, after the angel had told her that Jesus had risen and invited her to look into the tomb, Mary still didn’t believe that Jesus had risen from the dead. John 20:15 records a conversation between Mary and the risen Saviour. “Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? whom seekest thou? She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away.” Mary believed  that someone had stolen the body of Jesus. It was difficult for her to accept that the miracle of the resurrection had occurred!

Many times our faith is not as strong as we would hope it to be. When something supernatural happens, we often try to reason it out according to the rules of a finite world rather than give credit to God for His intervention. But the truth is, miracles still happen today, and only God Himself could possibly be the author of those miracles.

In my lifetime, I have witnessed two bona fide miracles. Beyond the “miracles” of a baby’s birth or the changed life of a new Christian, I am referring to things that only God could have done.

The first happened about 18 years ago. My friend’s husband had been diagnosed with mesothelioma, a rare form of cancer associated with asbestos. The life expectancy at that time was less than 2 years. Needless to say, we were all devastated, and the prayers began in earnest for God to intervene. The diagnosis was confirmed by two very reputable medical centers: UCLA in California and Emory in Georgia. There was no doubt… it was definitely mesothelioma. The only thing left now was surgery to remove as much of the tumor from his chest and hopefully prolong his life. On the day of the surgery, my friend and I sat in the waiting room and prayed for what seemed like hours. Finally, the doctor came in and sat down in front of us. Our faces must have reflected the great sorrow and fear in our hearts, and when the doctor spoke, his words shook us to the core. He said, “We’ve removed the mass. It was benign.” It seemed like time stopped as we both were trying to process what the doctor had just said. Benign? How could that be? Simple. God had moved, and we had just witnessed a miracle. BTW, my friend’s husband is still with us and no evidence of mesothelioma at all!

The second miracle hit a little closer to home for me. A couple of years ago, my husband had a routine physical that revealed a huge elevation in his PSA numbers. We followed up with a urologist, who repeated the PSA. When it came back still elevated, he chose to perform a biopsy. The results came back positive. My husband officially had prostate cancer. Compounding the concern we already felt, my husband ended up in the hospital with a very serious systemic infection from the biopsy. We were bombarding the Lord with prayers for wisdom, guidance, and of course, healing, as we moved forward. My husband was scheduled for an MRI to determine the extent of the cancer, and the results showed several areas of the prostate where the cancer cells were located. Before any treatment was to begin, his doctor wanted one more PSA blood test before determining the exact course of treatment. Surprisingly, it showed a reduction in the number! The doctor was stymied; he couldn’t explain the drop in the number. My husband and I cast a furtive glance at each other. Could it be that God had intervened? The doctor ordered a repeat PSA test. It came back lower than the prior test. The urologist decided to act conservatively; he wanted to wait a few weeks and retest the PSA in case the previous infection was influencing the test results. To sum up this story, 4 MRIs and several more PSA blood tests later have all been completely negative. No evidence of any prostatic cnacer! The medical profession cannot explain it, but my husband and I know exactly what happened. We had been blessed with a miracle!

I am reminded that my God is immutable as it says in Malachi 3:6, “For I am the LORD, I change not…” Hebrews 13:8 states, “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.” The same Jesus who rose from the dead, who did miracles during His earthly life, is the same God who saved me from my sins (a miracle in itself!). What my God did in Biblical times, He still does today. While many people do not believe that God is still a God of miracles, I sure do! He is a God who answers prayers… sometimes in conventional ways, sometimes in supernatural ways, sometimes in ways I understand, sometimes in ways that are far beyond my comprehension. However He chooses to answer, I know it will be in my best interest and according to His perfect will, and I choose to place  my trust in Him.

When God’s people pray, He listens.

When God’s people pray
And take the pains of earth to the doors of heaven
When God’s people pray
There is hope reborn, there is sin forgiven
And miracles you can’t explain a way
When God’s people pray.

(from “When God’s People Pray” by Wayne Watson)

“Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.”- Jeremiah 29:12-13

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Are you trusting God to do a miracle in your life?