Tackling the Enigma of Miracles

I grew up in the Christian Reformed Church.  We didn't talk a lot about miracles, although we appreciated the reported miracles during Jesus' time on earth.  While we prayed for healing and maybe some prayed for miracles in that regard, I don't remember a feeling of expectation that it would actually happen.  I also don't remember recognition of a miracle taking place if healing did happen.  People would thank God, but not say it was a miracle.  

At least, that was my recollection.  Miracles were not a big part of our theology.  But admittedly, I don't have the best memory in the world, so I could be recalling things incorrectly.

Living and working in Africa, I encountered more charismatic Christians who prayed for and expected miracles regularly.  They saw God being much more active in day-to-day life, and over time I grew to appreciate that.  One could say that the pendulum swung from one side to the other for me.

But now I believe I'm getting closer to the middle of those two extremes.  As I mentioned in last week's blog, I believe that "Christ IS come" means that He is with us today, and we are His hands and feet - we continue to bring the gift of Christ to the world through our time, talent, and treasure.  Being His hands and feet, and being made in His image, means that we need to problem solve most issues ourselves.  That would be the norm.  So if someone has cancer, the miracle is that there are people that are discovering new treatments, medicines, and providing care that can cure it!  If someone's car breaks down, there are people who know how to fix it!  If there is an emergency across the country, we can get on a plane and fly there - or we can send instant messages or have video calls!  People end up being the miracle that God intended and created them to be!

So what is the purpose of miracles?  I don't have any solid answers - I'm just wrestling with this and struggling through how to fit this into my current paradigm of God at work in us, to work with Him, in bringing the Kingdom of Heaven to earth.  But here are some thoughts.

I believe miracles are the exception, not the rule.

I believe that the purpose of miracles is for God to show His glory - to be a witness to those who do not know Him.  When Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, he said, "Father, thank you for hearing me.  You always hear me, but I said it out loud for the sake of all these people standing here, so that they will believe you sent me" (John 11:41b-42).  God desires to draw all people to Himself.  

A miracle is something that is done that people observing would say it could "only be God."  Miracles often break the laws of science.  The goal is that it would lead people to a belief in God.  Evidence of miracles would be in the presence of witnesses.

So then, are miracles a result of faith?  What is God's process in deciding a miracle?  Certainly He would choose to do miracles that would draw the biggest amount of people or have a big impact, as opposed to one sick person in a private hospital room, no?  

Maybe what I'm really struggling with is how we pray.  I am finding that my prayers are often met with God saying, "I concur.  Go do it!  I've equipped you!  I am with you! You are blessed to be a blessing!"  There is an affirmation, an encouragement, an accompaniment of God.  Yet I hear in many prayers, that there is an expectation that God alone will do it.  That the answer will come through miracles.

When I teach, I often tell the story of the man who died and went to heaven and lamented to God that he never saw a miracle, yet he had prayed for them his whole life.  God said to him, "Do you remember that tree outside your kitchen window?"  The man replied, "Yes."  God said, "That's a miracle."  The man said, "How is that a miracle?  That's just a tree!"  God said, "Let's see you make one out of nothing.  And also, you liked looking in the mirror every day."  The man said, "Well, yes, that is important for being respectable."  God said, "What you saw in the mirror as well is a miracle."  

The point is that we are surrounded by miracles.  Most of these miracles follow the laws of science and nature, which God put in place.  Those are the norms which are still incredible!  Thanks be to God!

Is Christmas the Appetizer?

I've been struggling with my Christmas spirit, or lack thereof, so far this season.  

But the truth is that this is not unusual for me- I often struggle with Christmas.  Don't get me wrong - the birth of Jesus is the greatest gift ever!  I love the family time as well!  But I often struggle with the incongruity between the "now" and the "not yet."  

In essence, this has been my struggle: In the Christmas season, we sing the classic hymn, "Joy to the world, the Lord is come."  But to be honest, it feels fake to sing this amidst so much turmoil in the world.  And there is so much turmoil.  So, so much.  

Much of the world does not know or feel joy, both Christians and non-Christians alike.

The song goes on to say, "No more let sin and sorrows grow, nor thorns infest the ground, He comes to make his blessings flow, far as the curse is found."  Yet the curse continues to be found everywhere.  There does not seem to be a flowing of blessings.  There is war, death, famine, sickness, poverty, persecution, and so much more.  

So to help with this paradox, Christians spend time during Christmas talking Christ's return, when all things will be made right.  We celebrate His birth, but we focus on His coming again as the next best thing.  The problem is that there is a lot of time in between these two events which feels quite joyless and very painful.

But a closer look at the lyrics of the hymn states, "Joy to the world, the Lord IS come."  "IS" is present tense.  "IS" is now.  Many have changed the words of this song to "the Lord HAS come."  But that change puts the presence of Christ in the past and that creates a serious challenge for us today!  If we are celebrating something that happened 2,000 years ago, which gives me a ticket to go to heaven when I die, what does that mean for today?  Not much.  And that is just not the case.  The Lord IS come.  He IS here.  

We are not a people simply waiting.  We are to continue the work that Christ started.  Christ is with us today in the 2.3 billion people who call themselves Christians! We are in a time of waiting for Christ's return, but we are not only in waiting mode.  Waiting is a time of inactivity.  Waiting is a time of looking and longing.  Waiting is focused on the future and not on the present.  

We are not just to be waiting for Christ's return.  We are the hands and feet of Christ every day until He returns.  We are agents of reconciliation.  The gift that came so long ago continues to be with us.  As we lament war and conflict and death, we get to be part of the solution.  

I think Christmas is a dark and lonely time for many because there is such a disconnect between the joy of the birth of Jesus and the present suffering that we are in.  And when our answer to this is that "one day He will come again," we miss out on the hugely important presence of Christ with us today.  

Christ's birth was not the appetizer with the full meal coming at His return.  The work for the restoration of this world is not for God alone to do.  We are not simply waiting for Him to act...and wondering why He tarries...and questioning His goodness while the world languishes in darkness, and death, and despair.  We join Him.  He calls...equips...and blesses us to be a blessing.

Christ in us...Christ IS come...we continue to live out and with the gift that came long ago.  

But what about all the pain and suffering in the world? It's true that I can't end the conflicts in the Ukraine, Middle East, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Nigeria, or elsewhere.  But I can be an agent of reconciliation in my own sphere of influence.  I can love my neighbor as myself.  I can speak the truth in love.  I can do all my work as an act of worship for the King.  I can care for creation so that it will flourish.  I can be a steward of my time, talent, and treasure to make this world a better place.  I can be salt, light, and leaven.  I can be prophet, priest, ambassador, saint, king.  

And I can pray.  I can encourage others to have compassion, capacity, competence and courage in their spheres of influence.  I can support agents of reconciliation in those places that I can't personally reach.  And together, we can make the world a better place.  We bring the Kingdom of Heaven on earth, a little bit of time, being faithful UNTIL He comes again.

I can because of Christ in me.  What a gift that would be if I do it well!  A gift that keeps on giving to the glory of God, in gratefulness to the Son, and only because of the Holy Spirit!

That is a message that gives me hope.  That is a message that can make me feel good about celebrating Christmas.  I'm thankful that the Lord IS come!

Transformation and Job Creation: Meet Joseph!

There's a difference between activities and impacts.  Activities are the things we do in the hopes that it will bring about impact.  Some of our activities are workshops for pastors, church leaders, and businesspersons.  Some of our activities are mentoring, training, and advocacy.  Our partners regularly report on their activities.  But we are very aware that activities do not lead to transformation.  Education without application is just information.  But information plus application leads to transformation.  So, every October, each of our partners hires an enumerator to do a randomized survey of 50 businesspersons and ten pastors who have gone through DML to assess impacts.  

Our impact survey results from 2023 closely align with the results from 2022, which makes us happy!  For every business trained, two new jobs are created (of course, we know this is an average - some create zero, some create ten, but two new jobs for each business is the average).  More than 1000 jobs were created just by our sample of 550 businesses in this past year - yet we have trained almost 18,000 businesspeople so far in 2023! [I'll let you do the math!] Business profit has increased by 20% and household income has also increased by 20% (this is down from 25% in 2022, mostly due to inflation and instability in some partner countries).  94% of churches reported increased attendance, giving, and spiritual growth in their members.  We thank God for these reports of impacts!

The story below shows the impact of one man in Ghana who attended the DML training in 2020:

Mr. Joseph Osman, owner of Joseph Farms in Sanga-Tamale metropolis, Ghana, is a young and talented entrepreneur who worships at a Baptist church in his small community. Joseph Farms, specializing in pepper and maize farming, is just two years old.

In his quest to become a successful businessman and acquire essential knowledge, Joseph eagerly attended the DML business training in 2020, despite having to travel a significant distance. The training had a profound impact on him, shifting his perception of business from a secular endeavor to a platform for spreading the message of Christ. He learned valuable skills, such as customer satisfaction, business boundary setting, and pricing.

After the training, Joseph faced the challenge of choosing a specific business venture. With guidance from DML partner Hopeline Institute, he decided to venture into farming and secured one-acre plots for maize (corn) and pepper cultivation.

Joseph also has aspirations to become a journalist and is actively saving around 60% of his crop farming proceeds to fund his education. In addition, he plans to diversify his income by raising goats and sheep, recognizing the importance of a solid business foundation and clear boundaries.

In closing, Joseph expressed his gratitude to DML Hopeline Institute for the insightful training and the loan that kickstarted his business. His ultimate goal is to use his business as a means to spread the Good News of Christ to others.

These impacts could not happen without the work of partners, prayers, and supporters around the world.  Thank you for partnering and praying for DML!  

We still have a matching challenge grant for new recurring givers until we reach $25,000.  If you would like to give a monthly gift, for $5/month and up, our donor will match your giving for the first year.  Please prayerfully consider helping us reach our goal for 2023 by going here.