The below video features Steve Thompson on the subject of signs, wonders and miracles
courtesy GodTube
A Personal Example of A Miracle
I sat uncomfortably in the pew watching the evangelist at a revival event call people up who needed a miracle from God. A day or two earlier I had injured my hip in a fall down wet stairs. Not only was my hip still sensitive, but with each step I felt a pronounced and disconcerting “click” as the upper ball of my femur bone rotated in my right hip joint. I suspected it was a fracture. Sitting there, I wasn’t uncomfortable so much because of the injury but because I thought this call for healing was cheesy and unnecessary. It smacked of the then recently disgraced “televangelist” ministries of Baker and Swaggart and I wanted no part of it.
Even though I had read of such miracles in the Bible, I didn’t believe God still worked such amazing feats so casually ("on-cue", so to speak). In silent protest, I decided I would not go up for prayer. As I sat and watched, to my amazement, the still small voice of the Holy Spirit began prompting me to go up for prayer. My answer was a firm “No.” After the line emptied out, the evangelist kept up the invitation for others to come up for prayer. This made me even more uncomfortable. The Holy Spirit persisted in prompting me again and again to go up for prayer and I continued to resist. Eventually, I realized that the evangelist somehow knew that there was one more person he was supposed to pray for—-me. Between the promptings of the Spirit and the evangelist patiently waiting for someone else to come up before moving on in his message, I felt cornered. Somewhat embarrassed, I gave in and went up for prayer.
The evangelist placed his hand on my shoulder then resumed his preaching to the rest of the congregation. Meanwhile, I was apologizing to God for resisting his promptings and telling Him that, yes, I believed He would heal me (what did I have to lose?). Suddenly a powerful force entered my right leg through the bottom of my foot and began to wrap around my leg as it climbed toward my hip! “Wow”, I thought, “this is really weird!” As the evangelist removed his hand, still having not spoken one audible prayer over me, I turned and walked away completely healed of the click, click, click in my walk. My hip no longer felt bruised anymore. I was amazed, I was grateful, and I was humbled.
Are Miracles Real?
The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines a miracle as: “an extraordinary event manifesting divine intervention in human affairs.” The truth be told, life itself is a miracle that defies rational, natural explanation by any other means than divine intelligent design. In every day usage, however, we tend to view “miracles” as something rather dramatic and extraordinary. By definition, miracles do not have to be (and usually aren’t) as dramatic as the one I described above.
Miracles (or "divine intervention") include the simple answer to a humble prayer, the otherwise unexplainable provision of financial assistance desperately needed, the supernatural provision of protection which prevents you from being injured or killed in an accident or intended violent attack, as well as dramatic healings from terminal illnesses and the regeneration of human limbs. Miracles provide the evidence for a compassionate, supernatural God. And they come in a seemingly infinite variety of ways.
Where is the Evidence for Miracles?
The somewhat frustrating reality about miracles is that they are difficult to prove by presently known scientific methodologies and instrumentation. For one, science requires that a phenomena be "reproducible." God and His supernatural manifestations simply do not work that way, they are unique to a person(s) and set of circumstances. Lastly, the scientific method (historically, just a toddler) has grown up with a natural-world orientation. Science has no idea on how to even begin to examine an unfathomably powerful and infinitely superior invisible spiritual realm. Even if science could explore the supernatural, chances are God would not allow Himself to be unequivocally documented by anything other than faith.
God places supreme value on an individual’s faith in Himself, not in the person’s wisdom or cleverness in being able to prove God’s existence through the scientific method. In fact, God has gone on record promising to confound the wise (i.e. those who take pride in their own intellect), see Isaiah 44. Jesus told the evidence obsessed disciple Thomas: “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed." It is for our own good that God withholds undisputable scientific proof of His existence.
As explained to the disciple Thomas, the more our belief in God is based on hard natural evidence instead of faith, the less we will be blessed by God for that belief. I may not understand the divine reasoning behind this but I do know that it has something to do with God’s intentional and consistent refusal to be examined under a human microscope or placed in a box created by human hands. We are the clay; He is the potter---not vice versa.
That said, there are in fact numerous physical healings that have been documented by the treating physicians of the people involved. Though these represent only a fraction of all healings, if you have the time and resources, you could put together a whole book on just that documentation.
Research on the Supernatural Exploding
Just because proving divine intervention is often problematic doesn’t mean that highly educated medical researchers haven’t noticed the very real existence of miracles and given it their best shot. For example, since the year 2000 over 6,000 studies of intercessory prayer have been conducted. Neal Krause, a sociologist and public health expert at the University of Michigan has conducted research on people of faith. In his study of regular churchgoers he has discovered that those who are generous and giving do better than those who aren’t. He found that those with a pronounced sense of gratitude in their attitude have a reduced incidence of depression. He found that people who realize that their life has meaning live longer than those who do not.
And Mr. Krause's findings are far from solitary. Such distinctions have been confirmed by many others including Daniel Hall, a surgeon at the University of Pittsburg Medical Center. He found that regular churchgoers enjoy an extra 2 to 3 years of life over the general population. Robert Hummer, a social demographer with the University of Texas has discovered that people who never attend religious services have twice the risk of dying over the next eight years as people who attend once a week. And the list goes on and on about positive distinctions between the faithful and those who are not (see TIME, 02/23/09 issue for more interesting information along this line.)
For the millions of us who have personally experienced divine intervention, we need no further evidence that we have a compassionate and merciful God who loves us dearly. For those who arrogantly reject God, no evidence will ever be enough.
Are You Ready for YOUR Miracle?
Please take a moment to review the above video from Faith Alive Family Church. Hear about the supernatural healing power of our merciful Creator and be encouraged that you can be next to experience God's power!
Proof of miracles? To bolster your faith in our Almighty God, check out James King's interview, below. Hear how God led Mr. King directly to Nadia Bloom (the autistic girl lost for days in alligator infested Florida swamp land). Hundreds of others (including trained and experienced law enforcement officers, helicopters and high-tech search equipment) failed to accomplish what only a faithful servant of the Almighty Living God could.
Note: Please understand that this event is a DOCUMENTED example of divine intervention. Even experienced law enforcement and search and rescue personnel admit this must be a miracle!
The below video courtesy Youtube
If you haven’t experienced the miraculous power of God, decide now to pursue it with all of your heart! A miracle can happen to anyone, especially you! I have heard of several instances where people who didn’t even believe in God or who were hostile toward religion were blessed by divine intervention. I, myself, was a recipient of divine intervention (though I didn’t recognize it until later due to my biblical ignorance) several years prior to my decision to follow Jesus and become a Christian.
But in All Things, Be Balanced
On the other hand, I want to make sure you understand that there is no "magic" formula (i.e. prescribed ritual) for obtaining a particular miracle. If someone tells you there is a "magic formula" or "magic prayer" that will result in a particular miracle--run the opposite way. Yes, we can do certain things which enhance the likelihood of the miraculous (request my free report on this subject), but we must understand that no matter how much we do or how badly we want divine intervention, only God will decide how to answer our request based on His plan for our lives; and His plan for our lives is GOOD, even when it doesn't feel that way. This is one reason there is so much confusion and ignorance concerning the miraculous.
Too often we make one or another extreme presumption. On one side is the presumption that we are unworthy of a miracle in our lives. At the other extreme is the belief that God will immediately jump to any request we make involving the miraculous. Both are equally misguided; the truth is somewhere in the middle. The fact is that God is intimately concerned with our lives and is open to expressing His love for us through divine intervention as long as it does not disrupt His overall plan for our life and those around us or violate His character (including His divine word). God is not, however, the proverbial “genie in a bottle” that is beholden to us for a particular miracle.
When God Decides to Move
Based on my experiences and research, I am convinced that each time God divinely intervenes it is because of a strategic purpose. That purpose will always be consistent with His specific plan for our life, the lives of those we will influence, and the world-wide goal of offering the gift of eternal life to every person on Earth. Miracles, then, are not random, whimsical acts of God. Miracles are premeditated, strategic acts of God designed to demonstrate His existence, bless His children, support the preaching of the Gospel, fulfill His Word and confirm the nature of His character.
At this point, I want to make sure you understand that miracles are not as rare as you might think. No, they may not be happening to you or someone you know every day but divine intervention is happening to untold tens of thousands of people around the world every single day! Will you be next? The question is: will you believe it when it happens and give God glory or will you write it off as coincidence? If you answered "yes" to the former, get ready to go after your miracle! Are you ready?
I heard an enthusiastic “YES!”, so let me give you some encouragement to pursue your miracle. However it may occur, divine intervention is an expression of God’s love and power. The Holy Spirit once told me that “faith is the key that unlocks the power of God.” So what is faith?
The Awesome Power of Faith
The Bible defines faith as being: “…the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1). Read a little further and you find this: “But without faith it is impossible to please Him (God), for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him" (Hebrews 11:6). So faith is a powerful force to be reckoned with. But what if your faith is kind of shaky?
Please relax; don’t be discouraged by thinking that you have to have some kind of apostolic faith to experience the miraculous. Look at my own example at the beginning of this article, my faith was only half-hearted (note: the evangelist's annointing, gifting and faith obviously compensated for my lack thereof)---yet I received God’s miraculous healing! Of course, I recommend developing the strongest, fiercest faith you possibly can. My experience is that the strength and boldness of my faith in pursuing divine intervention correlates, to some degree, with the impressiveness of the miracle I subsequently witness.
Faith can be either weak or invincible. The end result of each was explained to me by the Holy Spirit: “As you believe, so you will receive.” Believe to the fullest extent, receive to the fullest extent; believe feebly, receive feebly, if at all. The point I want to make is that faith, whether it is our own or someone else's, plays a key role in experiencing the power of God*. Faith alone, however, is not the only variable in the equation. There are other reasons why God may decide to delay or even deny His intervention in our lives--even despite the greatest of faith. So, if your miracle is delayed, don't let anyone--including yourself--automatically knock your personal level of faith. It may simply be that the "perfect time" for the miracle is yet around the corner.
*Note: In any discussion of Christian faith, it is important to note the difference between bold faith and foolish presumption. Bold faith stands on the written or "spoken" Word of God provided for a specific situation. Presumption involves the misapplication of scripture or of God's personal revelation. An example of foolish presumption would be to take the promises of God's protection of His people, disregard the scripture which warns us "not to put God to a foolish test", then jump out in front of a Mack truck and expect God to deliver you from harm. Although this example is an obvious exaggeration, the reality is that the difference between faith and presumption can be extremely subtle. There is definitely tension between presumption and faith. The boundary is sometimes a very fine line that is hard to see. I go into these differences in more detail elsewhere on the site.
NEVER give up!
It is a tragedy that so many people give up on pursuing their miracle if it is not immediately granted. Instead, they need to doggedly pursue it. Don't play games with God; do you really want this miracle or not? If yes, then do whatever God may require to pursue it! Perhaps you need to get closer to God. Perhaps you need to fast and pray. Perhaps you need to quit cheating on your taxes. Perhaps you need to demonstrate a faithful fighting spirit (see Matthew 11:12 AMP). The bottom line is not to ever give up but to find out why God is delaying your miracle--listen to Him!
Consider the parable of the persistent widow found in Luke 18:
Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. He said: "In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared about men. And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, 'Grant me justice against my adversary.'
"For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, 'Even though I don't fear God or care about men, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won't eventually wear me out with her coming!' "
And the Lord said, "Listen to what the unjust judge says. And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly."
Although no "magic" formula or prayer will summon forth the awesome power of the Almighty Living God, there are several things which increase the likelihood of a miracle.
Based upon years of experience and research in this area, I have several recommendations on how to pursue divine intervention in your life. My first and foremost recommendation is to become reunited with your loving heavenly Father through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. If you would like to know how to do this, click on the below "paradise" link.
