Verse: And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues;...they will place their hands on sick people and they will get well - Mark 16:17-18Topic: Why has God stopped doing miracles?
Personal Piece: This week has been a rather exhausting one, between abnormally long shifts at work, a ridiculously busy Valentine's shift (I still don't understand why Chick-fil-A is so popular for V-day) and taking a 2-hour drive to go meet my first nephew, I feel like I could sleep all day today. But the weather is beautiful and in Wisconsin you just never know how long that will last in the middle of February. Today is a perfect day to bust out the long board and go for a ride. Yesterday I got to go sit out in the sun and bask in both the physical and spiritual light of Jesus. As I started the book of Luke and was overcome with the beauty and mercy of a God who was willing to spend NINE MONTHS living in the womb of a woman he created. That's just incredible! And yet people today would argue that he wasn't even alive at that time. What a joke! How many people in today's day would have encouraged Mary to scrape GOD out of her body and discard him like tissue because his existence wasn't in her plan. Ugh I can't even imagine! But I digress...
Thought of the Week: When I read the Bible sometimes it can be hard to believe that the stuff that I'm reading really happened. We just don't see stuff like that anymore. We don't see fire come down from heaven, or seas parted. We don't see the sun stand still or walls fall down. We don't see people healed or the dead raised. It just doesn't happen like it did back then, at least not in the Western world. Sometimes we might hear stories of healings and miraculous escapes in other countries but in America it just doesn't happen. Why is that? Why do missionaries see things happen but not in America? I think if we really examine ourselves we know the answer.
If you're anything like me, you're comfortable. In America we have this "thing" called the "American Dream". I'm learning more and more everyday how much of a dream it really is. Have you ever heard that cliche "If it seems too good to be true it probably is"? Yeah that's exactly what the American Dream is and yet we tend to think that we as American's are the exception. No matter what our childhood looks like we all grow up being told that in order to make anything of ourselves we have to get an education and find that special someone to spend the rest of our lives with. We need a good paying job, a nice house and a fancy car. And if you're a decent human being you will have 2 and half children.
I remember hearing that statistic in a number of psych classes and we'd all have a good laugh. But as I write this entry it only strikes me as sad. According to at least one statistic 1 in 3 woman will have an abortion before the age of 45 and most will never talk about it. They will get married and have their two children. They will build their American Dream but deep inside of them, hidden away from even their husbands they hold a devastating secret. Forever they will hold the "what-if" of the child that never was, they will make excuses to ease the guilt of their decision. After all that child would have somehow, someway interfered with the perfect plan. That right there is the American Dream. A life of comfort with the power to eliminate anything that interferes with it.
As Christians we have bought into the lie that we too deserve that life of comfort. Our high school graduates are pressured to attend college, our college graduates are pressured to get married, our newly weds are pressured to have children and then the cycle begins again when we start to ask our children what they want to be when they grow up. We expect answers such as firefighter, doctor, president and encourage them to make decisions at the age of 7 that will put them on those paths. We laugh when they say they want to be a superhero or a princess. I personally never want my child to answer that question with an occupation. I want my child to answer with quality. I want them to be strong and kind and creative and most will probably chuckle and ask them again. Right from the start our children are doomed to a life of unhappiness because they are pressured to make life decisions long before they have discovered who God has created them to be.
When I was a child, I wanted nothing more than to be a mother. But the pressures of that question were always heavy upon me. What did I want to be when I grow up? What did I want to do with my life? I went through the gamut of cliche answers but none of them ever sat well with me (I hate being cliche) finally when I was fourteen God and I had a conversation where he tried to show me what he wanted me to be. But the conversation was translated through societies lens of occupation and money and I determined to be a counselor. I don't regret going to school, there were a lot of amazing things I learned through that time (mostly about myself) and God has confirmed to me through a number of prophetic words that that time will not be wasted. Even still I know that the image I have had in my mind is not the image that has been in God's mind. I still don't see his vision clearly cause I've still got American colored glasses stuck to my face. Not to mention a lot of pressure to take the next step in the American Dream.
Miracles happen when we are aligned with God's will but Americans tend to live out of alignment. Money may not be evil but it certainly is the root of all evil and we live in a rich nation that is deeply rooted in selfishness and therefore evil. The thought of losing our phones, internet, cable, car or house strikes us with fear and the the thought of sleeping on the ground, having no clean water and only one change of clothes, the thought of making less then a dollar a day is unthinkable to us and yet it is how many people live. People in third-world countries have no choice but to trust in something divine to save them and that's where the miracles come in.
We have to let go of the American Dream if we ever hope to live God's dream. Jesus said that those who truly believe in him would be able to cast out demons and heal the sick and speak in other languages. The man who rose people from the dead said we would be able to do greater things than him. I have to ask myself what I believe in more. My God who I can't physically see, or the money that is unreliable. The American Dream says money, God says there's more. I don't know what more entails, I know that some pretty incredible things are involved. I also know some pretty scary things are involved (demons are nothing to mess around with). But there's a longing in my soul that a degree and a fancy house can't fill.
Digging Deeper: For more information on abortion from a Christian perspective there are a number of books you can check out. Gianna Jesson's book "Gianna: aborted and lived" is an incredible testimony of a woman who survived abortion. "Atonement Child" by Francine Rivers is a fictional story about the bondage of abortion. If you or someone you know has had or is planning to have an abortion, know that it is NOT your only option. Even Christians make mistakes and there are pregnancy care centers in every major city that are willing to help you, whether it be in finding other options or finding healing from an abortion of the past. Don't do it alone.
To get to know yourself better here there are a number of tests you can take. The most accurate personality test I've ever used is the MBTI test which can be found at 16personalities.com. To find your Core Values try www.onlinepersonalitytests.org
Challenge: No matter where you are in life it is not too late to take a step back from the American Dream and discover what God's dream for you is. Find out what 5 things you value most in life, your strengths and your longings. The better you know how God created you the better you will see what he created you to do.
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