Expecting a Miracle

In my last post, I referred to a saying that is made in our house often, "I would rather tell you 'Yes.' If I say 'No,' then you have to trust that I have a very good reason." This week I was reminded of this saying as I reflected on our house in Oxford. For those of you who don't know, we packed up our lives to move out here to Texas in total faith and obedience. We left behind not only the most wonderful friends and church but we also left behind a beautiful home that has still not sold. In the eyes of many, I know we looked like fools. We knew, however, that the door was open for us to move into full time ministry training, and to not walk through that door at that very moment would be disobedience. One of Chris's favorite quotes from Rick Warren's Purpose Driven Life is "Delayed obedience is disobedience." This was true for us, so we moved without waiting for the house to sell.

Almost a year later...the house is still on the market. We've just about used up all of our entire retirement paying the mortgage, and there seems to be no end in sight. We've prayed. We've begged. We've cried. "Lord, please...will you please DO something!! Have you forgotten about us? Did we misunderstand your calling on our lives? Should we have just stayed...waited..Lord, HELP!!!!" This week, I was sharing these thoughts with some of my girl friends, and the Lord showed me something even as I was talking. He reminded me of the family quote I mentioned earlier. He, too, loves to tell us (His children) "Yes." He has said "No" for now, so our job is to trust that He has a very good reason. He then reminded me of the story of the wedding in Cana of Galilee. The wedding party was running out of wine, and Mary asked Jesus to do something about it. I don't think she meant that she wanted a miracle...Jesus had not yet begun his miracles at that point. I think she simply wanted him to be the man of God that he was, and go do something about it. She had her ideas, I'm sure, of how she wanted him to "fix" the problem, and she probably "suggested" to Jesus how to solve this dilemma. This makes me smile as I think about it...I have my own ideas and suggestions of how I want Him to fix my problems too. It sounds almost comical as I voice that thruth!!! As you know, Jesus didn't jump just because Mary asked. He basically told her "Not right now, mom. It's not time yet." Mary was probably frustrated...didn't he know that she was just trying to spare the wedding hosts some embarrassment. In her mind, the time was perfectly right! Jesus knew, however, that He must wait till the perfect time when His Father would get the most glory. The wine must be gone, and their need must be acknowledged. All of their human efforts could not supply the wine for their guests, so Mary told the servants, "'Do whatever He tells you.'" (John 2:5) That's when Jesus stepped in and turned the water into wine. Giving all the glory to God the Father, Jesus began his earthly miracle ministry, and His disciples began to trust in His miraculous`power.

I saw the connection...God gets the most glory when we realize that all of our human efforts and resources are never enough. We, too, must acknowledge our need and submit to His plan. We need His divine interevention. We need His provisions. We need His wisdom. We need His strength. We need His love. We need His grace. We need His mercy. WE ARE NOTHING WITHOUT HIM. Like Mary, I have "informed" Jesus of our need (as if He needs my help :)!, and I have suggested MANY ways He could accomplish my goals!!Haha! And like Mary, He has told me "No." He's got a reason, and it is good. He knows exactly when it will bring the most glory to His FAther, and I have to trust Him.

At that point, I was happy with my revelation wisdom, and then I realized that His lesson for me wasn't over. When Jesus replenished the wine, He did it "His way." He could have filled the jars up with cheap, watered down, sub-standard wine. The guests had already had plenty to drink, and they would never know the difference. Jesus, however, supplied them with the finest, richest wines...even better than the original wine. The lesson there: His way is ALWAYS better than we can imagine. I have quoted I Corinthians 2:9 in a post before, but I think there is such truth and encouragement in it. It says that "'No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him....'" I can tell Jesus ALL day long how I think He should work this problem out, but my suggestions would pale in comparison to how perfectly He can and will resolve this situation in such a way that will bring the most glory to the Father.

That being said, I am expecting a miracle. I am not trying to write the script for Him...I am not near creative and/or smart enough.... My job is to simply trust that my "Yes" is coming, and when it does...ALL PRAISE AND GLORY TO GOD AND GOD ALONE!!!