The Greatest Miracle
There's something about birthdays that brings out the retrospective side of me. As they approach, I find myself thinking about where I came from and what God has brought me out of. My husband's birthday earlier this month was no exception. Instead of a traditional gift, I took him away for the weekend to celebrate. I found a cute little guest house on Airbnb, bought tickets to see Esther at Sight and Sound, and away we went. We saw the show our first night and spend nearly the entire next day, except for a trip to a coffee shop and to buy some fancy cupcakes, in our guest house. That was it, and it was glorious! As I was relaxing in a bubble bath (because that is what one does when on vacation) I realized something profound: I was okay, we were doing nothing and I was okay.
Rewind six years and we were a vastly different couple. While we enjoyed going away, we always needed to be doing something...well, not good. We were either drinking ourselves into oblivion, doing stashes of drugs, patronizing a strip club, or perusing a porn store (normally it was a combination of all of the above). That was how we spent our time; we were never content. So going away for a whole weekend with just each other and being perfectly at peace wasn't a miracle in and of itself but it did point the the greatest miracle of all: our transformed lives!
Now I want to take a minute to stop here and make a bold declaration: I believe in miracles! I've experienced ones in my own life and I've seen God do miraculous things in the lives of others. I've seen bodies healed and fused joints bend. I've seen cancer defeated and held miracle babies in my arms. I believe that the God of the Bible is the same God of today and that the things that He did then, He does now. I am a believer, not just in God but in His signs and wonders. So this isn't me negating all of the wonderful, beautiful, mind-boggling things that He does. I will be one of the first to pray for God to do something amazing, and I hope to always expect to see more, but I think sometimes we can get caught up in seeking after the signs and the wonders and miss the greatest miracle there is, a life transformed by Jesus.
“He lifted me out of the pit of despair, out of the mud and the mire. He set my feet on solid ground and steadied me as I walked along. He has given me a new song to sing, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see what he has done and be amazed. They will put their trust in the Lord.”
- Psalm 40:2-3 NLT
I absolutely love those verses. It is my testimony, right there in front of me, penned by David himself. I once wallowed in the mud and the mire, I reveled in it even. But then Jesus! Of course, I talk about what He's done, how could I not? But even more important than talking about it is walking it out! Notice that it doesn't say “many will hear about what He has done.” There is a power in seeing the manifestation of a changed life that far exceeds mere talk.
Folks, I've been healed, I've been delivered, I've had the experiences and the dreams and visions, but they pale in comparison to the new life that I have the privileged of waking up to every day. So the purpose of this week’s blog is simple, let's take time to remember where we once were and what God has done in and through us. These wonderful touchpoints of faith help to keep our fire burning and our hope alive for more. If He did it once, you best believe He will do it again.
Please dear ones, keep praying for the miraculous but never forget the most miraculous thing of all, your names are registered in heaven, you have been redeemed, you have been transformed and God isn't anywhere close to being done yet!
Written by Amanda Strauser