Anyone believing in me shall do the same miracles I have done, and even greater ones, because I am going to be with the Father. You can ask him for anything, using my name, and I will do it! John 14:13, The Living Bible my God, how great thou art! When I think of the miracle of our creation—our bodies and minds—it really is too much for me to fathom. But just as our bodies and minds are miraculous creations, God has made us to be God’s miracles in this world too. God has empowered us with gifts and graces and creative ability to minister in special ways with God’s people. Teachers who love their students and the opportunity to teach them don’t just follow the standard lesson plan or directions in a book. They call from within themselves expectations and visions of children coming alive and excited about approaching the subject matter in a different way. Medical cures originate in the minds of doctors and scientists. Great chefs take food preparation beyond known recipes and experiment to find tastier, healthier ways of cooking. These creative people spend time in quiet concentration and imaging. As Christians, we talk to God as we contemplate solutions to problems, but listening becomes just as important as talking. When we allow time for God to speak to us, we open ourselves to receiving a smorgasbord of ideas and solutions. The process of preparing becomes exciting as we feel God’s presence guiding us. When we go remove ourselves from TV, radio, and otherdistractions, and allow ourselves to be open to God speaking through the silence, ideas come easily. When I think of Jesus, the master teacher, who regularly performed miracles in the lives of people, I realize that his actions--raising Lazarus, healing the lepers, giving sight to the blind, and changing water into wine--were manifestations of his faith in God. Jesus performed miracles and Jesus was a miracle, for he understood the source of his power. He prayed often and moved forward into action, carrying in him the vision of the best that could be, for he knew that God would provide him with whatever he needed. Jesus came to let us know that, with faith, we can be miracles too. Our miracles may not manifest in the same way that Jesus’ did. Ours will be appropriate for our time, place, gifts and graces, creative ability, and, most of all, our faith. I sometimes read a book and ponder the thinking process of the author. Does he/she realize how the words in that book are becoming jewels to the readers, how lives are being changed, especially mine? The author probably doesn’t feel like the embodiment of a miracle; rather, he/she has simply done the best possible with the ideas that God has provided. In covenant discipleship, we have a General Rule that will guide us if we focus on using all that God has given us to witness to Jesus Christ in the world in a way that only we can witness. Knowing that our devotion and worship opportunities give us the time and ability to fuel-up so that we become better servants, causes us to grasp every experience that calls our minds to a higher place. Time spent with God becomes a priority. We come away knowing that God will give us the right words to say in places of discord, new ideas for the workplace, impetus toward places where our words will bring justice, and resources for whatever we may need in order to help others. It’s all there! The table is prepared before us. God is waiting for us to move into action. No matter how small the deed may be, it may become a miracle for somebody. We may never know what the dollar we gave to someone to get a cup of coffee, or the time we spent with a child, did for them spiritually, but if we are aware constantly of God’s guidance, we can be sure that God was doing something even greater for them through us and doing something for us at the same time. Isn’t it wonderful that, by listening to and obeying the nudging of the Holy Spirit, we may become God’s agents of miracles even as we receive miracles all during the day? Grace Bradford is editor of Covenant Discipleship Quarterly and author of Scriptures Come Alive. She is a covenant discipleship member and class leader at Asbury United Methodist Church, Washington, DC. Thoughts Upon God's Sovereignty | Covenant Discipleship Institute at Asbury Calling the Church to a Higher Order | Cultivating Sprouts Plant a Seed for Literacy | Called to be a Miracle How Goes Your Walk? Prayer | Back to Covenant Discipleship Quarterly Home Page