Miracles still happen, whether we believe in them or not.
I’m still basking in the glory of the Easter story. I spent the forty days of Lent attempting to draw closer to Christ and to remove things that hinder my faith walk. That is after all, the purpose of Lent. But, I also feel like Easter should be celebrated and reflected upon for more than just one day.
It’s only been a week since Easter and the The Easter baskets have all been plundered and the candy has long been eaten at this point. But, the miracle of the empty tomb, well it’s still glorious. I find myself once again, drawn to those three women who visited the tomb that first Easter. This time, the Gospel of Luke has grabbed my attention.
Luke’s version tells us that after that the women arrived at the tomb and found it empty, that two angels told them that Jesus had risen just as he had said. The women went at once and reported what they had seen to the apostles.
“But they did not believe the women because the words seemed to them like nonsense.” Luke 24:11
The entire idea of Jesus rising from the dead seemed like nonsense to the ones who had seen Jesus raise Lazarus from the dead. They had seen him heal countless people and cast out demons, but the testimony of three women who they knew well, seemed like nonsense.
But, isn’t that always the case with a miracle? Miracles themselves stand on the edge of impossible. More often than not, they defy explanation. Very often, modern humanity refuses to believe, just like those apostles did.
Even so, miracles happen everyday. People survive car crashes that are deemed unsurvivable. Sometimes a medical diagnosis leaves a family little hope, yet the patient is cured. No one knows why these things occur; although many desperately need to explain them.
Back in March in Spanish Fork, Utah, four police officers were attempting to rescue the passengers in a car that was upside down in a river. The rescuers all heard a woman’s voice calling “Help!” She called out more than once and one of the rescuers even yelled into the car that they were trying the best they could to get in there.
When the flipped the car over, the mother, who was driving, was dead, and had been for hours. Her 18-month-old child, Lily was alive, but unconscious. She survived, although they don’t know how. She was upside down, strapped in her seat for nearly fourteen hours, while the temperatures dipped well below freezing.
Did all four of those police officers make the story up? No doubt, some will say they did. They believe they heard the voice of an angel. I agree with them.
Perhaps, when we experience the miraculous, we should take a cue from those women on that first Easter. Even though they were scared and shaken, they unashamedly told others what they saw. Those police officers did the same.
We don’t have to have all of the answers and we don’t have to figure it all out. Faith isn’t about understanding all of the tiny details. Faith is about believing that a God who is so much bigger than we could ever imagine, is in control and nothing is too big for Him. Miracles still happen. Just ask the family of little Lily.
Have an awesome day!
Wendy 🙂