⁴⁸ Jesus asked, “Will you never believe in me unless you see miraculous signs and wonders?” ⁴⁹ The official pleaded, “Lord, please come now before my little boy dies.” ⁵⁰  Then Jesus told him, “Go back home. Your son will live!” And the man believed what Jesus said and started home.

So it is just like I was saying in my Daily Bread entry yesterday, I had this feeling that we would be discussing a little more about the subject of “signs and wonders”. Today, we will talk about the next miraculous sign that Jesus performed when He spoke to a government official about his son who was going to die.

The part that should really matter to us in this story is how the official, after listening to Jesus instructing him to go home, he decided to obey him and acted on his faith/belief in Jesus. And because he acted upon his belief, his son was totally healed too.

Certain Miracles May Require Us to Do Our Parts

As I was reflecting upon this story this morning, God reminded me of my personal experience with the 3rd miraculous sign that He performed in my life. This was the one from 2019. I know, for the context of today’s devotional, we’ll have to skip the one in 2015. But I am sure we will return to it at some point.

So, in August of 2019, I was feeling as broke as ever at that time. I was barely making enough from the occasional freelance gigs and I had very little money left in my transport fare card (we call it the ezlink here). And one day, an online acquaintance that had been following my journey for some time decided to reach out to me. He said he wanted to meet for coffee to discuss a potential collaboration. But I was a little hesitant because I knew I had very little funds left to spare. And yes, I had to be very prudent with how I was spending.

But without too much hesitation, I decided to agree to meet with him. So we met up at a mall close to his residence. And in the next 30 min of my life, God changed everything around. By the time we were done with coffee, he had offered to help me pay for a laptop and whatever piece of hardware I needed. In that very moment, I knew I was witnessing a miracle from God. That man, which turned out to be another one of my benefactors had just turned my whole life’s situation around in a single moment. Over the next few weeks/months, he gave me everything that I needed to get back on my feet. He changed my life. Quite literally. From struggling one moment to having abundance the next. How could I not consider that a miracle?

I am sharing this truly inspiring and motivating personal story because in that moment on that very day, I knew that if I had not acted and went to meet the stranger, I would not have been able to experience this incredible miracle in my life. But not just that, in the following months, the miracle/story also touched many people online and gave a lot of people hope.

They knew that if God could perform the miracle for me, that He can do the same for them as well.

Acting on Our Faith in God

There may be some rare situations where God would perform a miraculous sign and wonder right where we are. All we have to do is to be patient and wait. It’s true. But in my personal experiences so far, I think there is a much higher probability that most of those miraculous encounters will require some form of action on our parts.

Just as it takes two hands to clap, when God wants to perform a miraculous sign and wonder in our lives, sometimes we also need to do our part by acting on our faith. But ofcourse, in the world we live in today where we have so many incidences of scammers, I am sure God also expects us to be wise and act accordingly. But yes, once you have the confidence that something could be legit, and still challenges your faith, it might be the one that you need to act upon.

Whatever situation you may be facing today, I understand that it can be really terrifying. And sometimes, it can be downright scary to get your hopes up about something that may seem a little too good to be true. But if you have prayed about it and you know that it is potentially legit, why not take that leap of faith. Just remember, if I hadn’t taken that leap of faith in August 2019, I would never have experienced God turning my whole life around in an instant.

Personal Prayer for Today

Dear Heavenly Father,

Thank You for continuing to speak to me through Your word. Thank you for reminding me that there are times in our lives where we cannot just rely on our beliefs and faith alone. We need to act upon them in order to experience the kind of miraculous signs and wonders that You have installed for us.

Thank You for also reminding me of my own personal experiences and how out of a single story, it would go on to touch and inspire so many other people around me. This is yet again another great example that Your miracles isn’t just about us, or me. It’s about showing the world who You are and what You can do. It’s about bring light and hope into the world.

Today, as I continue to believe and have faith in You and the miracles that You have yet to perform in my life, I am also ready to act upon those beliefs and faith because I understand now that I also have to do my part just as You’ve done Your’s.

I vow to give You all of the praises and all the glory.

In Jesus’ mighty name I pray.

Amen.