Two Ways to Live

There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.

I wish I had said this, but it wasn’t me. It was Albert Einstein. Einstein was a huge genius. I think his bagels are so good, maybe even better than Panera’s. (That was an early morning attempt at humor … sorry.)

This week, Lisa’s car had a warning light come on. Not a good time, but when is it ever. Expenses are tight, a wedding is near, travel is involved, and the bank account is … well, y’all know the rest. So, I prayed.

I went to AutoZone and got the code (clutch/transmission issue), reached out to a few mechanic friends, let Lisa use my car while I took care of hers, and scheduled for a friend who owns a garage to look at it. Now, don’t take this as trivial … but he fixed something I had already plan to fix and he couldn’t find anything else. The light never came on for him, the code was not on the car’s computer at all, and no remnants of issue were even evident.

It was a miracle – an answer to prayer. You may say coincidence, error on my part, quark, or his fixing A corrected B which then took care of C. Me, I say it is an answer to prayer. So yes, a miracle.

And I made sure I said thank you.

There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.

We walk through this life and think this is all there is … things we see around us. Everything is natural, coincidence, bound by cause/effect, and nothing outside of the natural system makes an impact. We talk about God but live like we can control our lives. We say we pray, but we don’t even look for Him to really answer.

I think we need to look a little deeper, walk by more faith, and open our eyes so that we see God at work around us. This week, besides the car issue …

• He protected me when I went head over heals while descending the hike off a mountain, when I walked across a pedestrian swing bridge that was closed for repair, and kept all bears away (even when I saw their droppings)
• Every morning, He let me look into the eyes of a woman who stayed with me for over 30+ years
• He helped me show patience in tough situations, gave me kind words to say to those hurting, and revealed words of wisdom to a son who is beginning to feel the pressure of a wedding 22 days away.

So let me share a few quotes to ponder as we wrap up this week …

• One of the main reasons that we lose our enthusiasm in life is because we become ungrateful… we let what was once a miracle become common to us. We get so accustomed to his goodness it becomes a routine...

• Just because you can explain it doesn’t mean it’s not still a miracle.

• And when it rains on your parade, look up rather than down. Without the rain, there would be no rainbow.

• Christ’s miracles were not the suspension of the natural order but the restoration of the natural order. They were a reminder of what once was prior to the fall and a preview of what will eventually be a universal reality once again–a world of peace and justice, without death, disease, or conflict.

• God’s miracles are to be found in nature itself; the wind and waves, the wood that becomes a tree – all of these are explained biologically, but behind them is the hand of God

So, today, look around, and see God at work. Expect a miracle.

Quotes by Einstein, Osteen, GK Chesterton, and Ronald Reagan.