Yesterday a few of my friends were talking during the evening church service. I am sure we were supposed to be somewhere, but somehow we ended up in the hall in front of the auditorium. The children were using the auditorium, so instead of looking for the place we were supposed to be we just stood there talking about whatever popped into our heads. I really enjoyed that time with my friends. It was very spiritual.
I don't really remember how it happened, but somehow the topic of conversation turned to miracles. One of my friends said that recently he had a discussion that was centered on the definition of miracle. He said that in this discussion he and another friend decided that a miracle is any event that transcends physical laws of nature. It sounded like a good idea, but the more I thought about it the less it worked for me.
My first problem with this definition is that what would be a miracle in one century may just be a curious technological phenomenon in another century. Penicillin was a miracle drug, for a while, until more people began to understand how it functioned and we began to take it for granted. For a while society talked about the miracle of flight, but now people stand in long lines waiting to board planes headed around the world while complaining about inefficient security measures. I guess what I am trying to say is that saying a miracle is any event that we don't understand scientifically is a cop out.
My second issue with my friends idea is that there are some totally normal, everyday, miraculous events that happen all the time. Sunsets, Autumn and babies being first on a long list that comes to mind. I have heard the optical explanation for the dazzling colors that are displayed on the horizon at sunset. To be honest, I don't care how you explain it scientifically, it is still miraculous. The amazing colors of fall in the Ozarks, miraculous. My grandson smiling. To me these everyday normal things are more miraculous than many of the great miracles of the Bible.
You may say that I am only arguing semantically. Maybe, but my point here is that the ability to perceive the miraculous is just as supernatural as the performance of the miraculous. I hope that makes sense to you because it does to me. It was with this in mind that I responded to my friend's statement about what makes a miracle. I said, "You know, I think miracles happen all the time, but we just don't notice them."
Hammered. That is how I would describe the reaction of my friends to my statement. "Yeah, somehow I just didn't notice the water in the lake being separated so that people could cross on dry land." "Why don't we feed the whole church, I have a package of cheese crackers in the car." "I am going to follow that pillar of fire on my way home tonight." I tried to explain what I was saying. I tried to explain the miracle of a believer's perception. The problem was that I was unable to explain it in a manner that they could perceive.
After that I spent some time in thought. Was I wrong? I really didn't think that I was. I still don't. I was watching the Naked Archaeologist on the t.v. the other night and the narrator guy was explaining how the wall's of Jericho could have been leveled because of an earthquake and the crossing of the Jordan River could be explained by a landslide. I was wishing I could find this guy and talk to him. I wanted to talk to him about the miracle of perception.
I don't really remember how it happened, but somehow the topic of conversation turned to miracles. One of my friends said that recently he had a discussion that was centered on the definition of miracle. He said that in this discussion he and another friend decided that a miracle is any event that transcends physical laws of nature. It sounded like a good idea, but the more I thought about it the less it worked for me.
My first problem with this definition is that what would be a miracle in one century may just be a curious technological phenomenon in another century. Penicillin was a miracle drug, for a while, until more people began to understand how it functioned and we began to take it for granted. For a while society talked about the miracle of flight, but now people stand in long lines waiting to board planes headed around the world while complaining about inefficient security measures. I guess what I am trying to say is that saying a miracle is any event that we don't understand scientifically is a cop out.
My second issue with my friends idea is that there are some totally normal, everyday, miraculous events that happen all the time. Sunsets, Autumn and babies being first on a long list that comes to mind. I have heard the optical explanation for the dazzling colors that are displayed on the horizon at sunset. To be honest, I don't care how you explain it scientifically, it is still miraculous. The amazing colors of fall in the Ozarks, miraculous. My grandson smiling. To me these everyday normal things are more miraculous than many of the great miracles of the Bible.
You may say that I am only arguing semantically. Maybe, but my point here is that the ability to perceive the miraculous is just as supernatural as the performance of the miraculous. I hope that makes sense to you because it does to me. It was with this in mind that I responded to my friend's statement about what makes a miracle. I said, "You know, I think miracles happen all the time, but we just don't notice them."
Hammered. That is how I would describe the reaction of my friends to my statement. "Yeah, somehow I just didn't notice the water in the lake being separated so that people could cross on dry land." "Why don't we feed the whole church, I have a package of cheese crackers in the car." "I am going to follow that pillar of fire on my way home tonight." I tried to explain what I was saying. I tried to explain the miracle of a believer's perception. The problem was that I was unable to explain it in a manner that they could perceive.
After that I spent some time in thought. Was I wrong? I really didn't think that I was. I still don't. I was watching the Naked Archaeologist on the t.v. the other night and the narrator guy was explaining how the wall's of Jericho could have been leveled because of an earthquake and the crossing of the Jordan River could be explained by a landslide. I was wishing I could find this guy and talk to him. I wanted to talk to him about the miracle of perception.
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