Albert Einstein is quoted as saying, “There are two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.”
Somewhere along the way I started living my life as though everything is a miracle. Basically, I’ve turned into my mother.
It’s funny, I remember talking to her on the phone in college or as a young adult and she would say, “Oh my goodness! They had the TV I wanted on sale at Best Buy! It’s a miracle.” She wasn’t throwing around the word “miracle.” No, she actually believed God had orchestrated life to lift her spirits that day.
I would roll my eyes.
Why would God care about the details of our lives, Mom? If God really cared about my life he’d pay off my student loans and find me a nice husband.
By the way, God did both of those things for me in the next several years, but that’s another story.
About 5 years ago, something in my heart changed. I was challenged in a podcast to look for God’s love every day. The idea was to wake up expecting Him to plant little reminders of His love in my day and then to find them. (It was a Joyce Meyer podcast, but I can’t remember the episode. If you’re curious, listen to them all. They’re all fabulous.)
And guess what?! If you’re looking for God you’ll find him. He wants to be found. If you’re looking for proof that he loves you, you’ll see it in the details. You’ll find it in the uplifting phone call or email that comes at just the right time. You’ll find it in the $5 bill stuffed in your pocket when you’re hungry and forgot your wallet. You’ll find it in the grace of a friend who forgives you when you really don’t deserve it.
I’ve seen all of those miracles in my life.
This past Sunday, as I knelt by the alter, my pastor asked how he could pray for me. I had some specific needs I wanted to bring to God, but first I wanted my pastor to join me in a prayer of praise for the miracle of breast cancer.
Yes, I am going WAY out on this one in some people’s minds, and it’s okay to disagree with me, but it’s my cancer experience and this is how I see it. It was a miracle from God.
It’s almost too other-worldly to even put into words, but I’ll try. The enemy meant to steal my joy, kill my body and destroy my faith with cancer. But God took it and blessed me at every turn. Literally, not a single day went by when I didn’t lie in bed and reflect on God’s amazing love. Everything– from the North Dakota friend who just happened to be visiting when I got the call from the doctor, to the first ever Susan G. Komen Athens Race for the Cure that just happened to align with my diagnosis– it all seemed orchestrated to remind me I was loved.
You know what I’m most grateful for? That I didn’t miss it. I didn’t miss the miracles wrapped up in the pain.
Your life is filled with miracles, too. I pray you don’t miss them.