Signs, and Scoffing!

I was once in a group discussion about whether we believed in miracles and the “supernatural.” It was a fairly lively, opinionated discussion as I recall. But one idea I took away was that sometimes, a sign or a miracle can be something in the natural realm that happens with such specificity that it is considered to be a miracle or supernatural in the eye of the beholder.

While of course many biblical accounts of miracles and supernatural happenings were clearly witnessed by multiple people and I still believe such things happen today, it does seem like more often such “supernatural” miracles and signs occur in a manner which we cannot necessarily prove as being a direct answer to some prayer or an event so timed with circumstances, thoughts and happenings that we name it as seeming to be some “sign” to us from God.

I admit to being more open to viewing the world and my interactions in prayer and in situations to easily be interpreted beyond simply natural coincidences/reasons. Yet, I have amounts of “scoffing” in me, too, when I hear accounts of such things by others or even analyze my own experiences with doubt, or, with wanting to somehow prove the unproveable!

I often think that God intentionally allows some small amount of reasonable doubt to co-exist with big amounts of experiential certainly! There’s a term “God wink” that comes from a popular book, and this idea seems to fit a number of these things. I actually think there’s a kind of beauty in the mystery of it all…an excitement that fills us when we have these experiences that we recount to others, and there are responses of either skepticism or mutual confirmative excitement.

I want to share a recent experience that I had this past Friday.

A friend was having surgery that morning which potentially could have been quite extensive; it was unknown how this surgery might progress. I had promised to pray, and I knew that this was a time I wanted to make sure I kept that promise.

I kept her in thought Thursday evening and prayed intentionally and specifically before bed. I knew that she was leaving for the hospital around 5:30 am. I am not a morning person, especially these days when I routinely head for bed around 1 or 2 am and sleep until 9 or 10 am most days, when I do not need to be anywhere.

And in fact, I got into bed around 2 am Thursday night.

Once I’m asleep, I sleep deeply and generally do not awaken during the night (unless I am particularly distressed over something and then, occasionally, I will have restless awakening and even intense prayer times or dreams during those hours).

I definitely do not see too many sunrises, although…OK…occasionally I do.

I remember slightly awaking around 5:30 am actually and rolling over and thinking of her and saying a simple prayer and going back to sleep. But, around sunrise, I somehow awoke and noticed a very glorious view through my window, and I took two photos. Because I glanced at the time and remember thinking to myself, she’s probably in surgery by now. And therefore, I immediately felt it was some type of sign, and I stayed awake long enough for some more intentional prayers to be offered up for her before dozing off again.

Late that afternoon, I found out that her surgery had gone extremely well and was much less involved than previously feared could be the scenario. And I spoke with her today, and she said “it was a miracle” and answer to “many prayers.”

And then, I was telling her about my experience of seeing the sunrise that morning. I said I thought it was around 7:30 am and she said that would have been right when she was going to surgery. I said that I would find the photo file’s “time stamp” and show her sometime.

I did look at it on my computer and as you see below, the two photos were taken at 7:03 and 7:18 am!

The scoffing part in me thinks…”but, it wasn’t exactly at 7:30 am!” and “Maybe I awoke because she was naturally on my mind and it was just my own internal clock that made me see that sunrise, on that particular day (only) and ‘around’ that time.”

Even in our faith, their exists skepticism! And I find that it won’t be long before once again I’m wanting/needing that next unexpected, unplanned, unsought noticing of some “sign” at the right moment to impact me.

But, that is awfully close (the photo’s time stamp)…and…it was such a lovely, unexpected sight for me that morning with immediate association. I do believe God has reasons for such things–to strengthen our faith and trust in Him and that of others. And she certainly knows that is was unlike me to be awake at that hour, ha ha!

I suppose I share this seemingly small little event as a testimony of sorts. We live in such mysteries, daily…