Miracles

A while back a friend elicited a promise from me that I would blog once a month; if you can't tell I have failed miserably. However, I try to think quality over quantity whenever I feel guilty. My thoughts have been all over the place lately. First of all, when my friends whom I do not see often ask me what has been going on in my life I am naturally inclined to tell them that my life is boring and that I lack stories to tell. I have recently realized that is not technically true; I have miracles. Maybe my life isn't as exciting as M-'s because I am not living in a foreign country, nor A-'s because I am not planning my wedding and done with school, nor is life as interesting as K-'s as she prepares for twins. But I am still so grateful to be where I am and my life is interesting enough.

I work with youth in custody, as a mentor, a chauffeur, and sometimes a babysitter. In the last couple of weeks I have gone from working with a couple of teenagers to a minivan full. My kids (as I call them) range from 14 to 19 in age and are just as different in personality. With some the 5 hours a week together is fun and goes by fast, and for others it can be frustrating. A is like a sibling, N reminds me of my brothers, M is full of it and obnoxious, K is a lot of talk but seems sincere, T is a slow mover, and T was brainwashed and I am just trying to figure out where the training ends and he/she starts. For a few of them it is too early to tell what they are really like and where we will go with our time together, but I frequently try to remind myself that they are all children of God. Sometimes it is easier than others. However, last week as I drove two youth to court I was blessed with a reminder of why I do what I do. I have know these youth for almost a year I have been able to see them progress and grow in the last year; you might even call it a miracle. In part I wonder how much of their change is just growing up, how much is the work that we do, and how much is the hand of the Lord. One of the two was baptized in foster care while the other is a Jehovah's Witness and neither are active in their faith.

Three years ago I found myself in the MTC; I had the best companions and I learned a lot from them. However, an MTC experience that I have thought a lot about in the last couple of years occurred in Madrid, as my companion and I taught Pres. Hill. I honestly don't remember what we shared with him, but I will never forget what he shared with us. President Hill pointed out that we always find conditional wording in the scriptures when the end result is dependent on human agency. "...men are that they MIGHT have joy." As I have thought of the miracles I have witnessed in the recent past, it strikes me how dependent miracles are on our faith or our action.

My other miracles have very much depended on the exercise of "blind" faith. As back ground description, I wear hard contacts which can be expensive. I recently acquired a new pair of contacts which explains my lack of desire to purchase new ones. A couple of weeks ago, I was taking my contacts out when one dropped on the carpet. I immediately got down on my knees and started looking for the contact. After a couple of minutes of looking I grabbed a flashlight (not for lack of light but to catch the contact at an angle with the light) and offered up a prayer pleading for assistance. As I continued to search, I looked everywhere twice. I wanted to give up many times as the probability of finding the object of my search was slim indeed. But I persisted in faith that the Lord would answer my prayer and I would find it. And when I reached the moment of deciding that perhaps my Father and I were disagreeing on the importance of this contact or that perhaps I was meant to learn something else besides the fact that my prayers are heard: There it was, directly in front of me on a section of the floor that I had searched at least 4 times quite thoroughly. In the moment of finding it, I knew that it was a miracle (small though it was) and that it was a lesson to me in the Power of God.

Another miracle as it were occurred the very next day. I had an appointment of sorts at 11 a.m. and I arrived early enough to escort some friends who had never been to that building to the entrance they needed before heading to my entrance. As I approached I looked for a paper that allows me admittance and could not find it anywhere. At first I was not at all worried as I had placed the paper in my purse before leaving the house. However, after searching twice, I realized it must have fallen out in the car. Looking at my watch I noted that it was 10:40 and that I would not have time to walk back to the where my vehicle was located and get back in time for my 11 o'clock meeting. However, I decided to return to my car and use my time in another manner until my friends meeting ended. When I got to my car and found the paper I needed, I glanced down at my watch and it still said 10:40. This did not surprise me since the face of my clock does not have any numbers or lines designating the times; I frequently am off on my telling of time by a couple of minutes one way or another. I digress; encouraged by the time, I decided to try to make my meeting. I climbed the three flights of stairs to street level, and ran to make the light crossing the street. I hurried to the door and got caught behind a large group of the rather elderly (thus slow-moving) . However, as I finally gained entrance, I glanced at my watch to see how much time I had and was astonished to see that my watch still read 10:40. It was at that moment that I recognized the miracle that had occurred. Time had literally stood still while I got to where I needed to go. I even made it to my meeting early.

I was so humbled as I reflected on the miracles that I have seen in the past weeks. They were small, and probably insignificant to most people. Many would pass it off as coincidence or the power of perseverance, but I recognized the hand of the Lord in my life. Some might call them Tender Mercies, others just blessings, but for me those moments were miracles. I know that our faith can create miracles when needed. God's will and ours are not always the same, but when they are miracles can occur.  I was reflecting upon the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego when they were faced with being thrown in the fiery furnace for not worshiping the idols of the Babylonians. Their response was along the lines of "Our God will save us, but if not we will still believe." If I hadn't made it to my meeting, if I hadn't found my contact, and if the youth I work with never change, I would still know that God is still a God of miracles.

I don't know if any of this makes any sense but don't forget to have the faith to witness miracles in your own life.