The Making of a Miracle

The Making of a Miracle
It seems that we are living in a time where our faith in God is being tested to a greater degree than in the past. The economic hardships in many countries as well as the natural disasters such as happened in Haiti are testing grounds in which our faith will either falter or flourish. Jesus was constantly working with his disciples to increase their faith in the goodness of God and His miraculous ability to meet needs.
In Mark 8:1-9 we encounter the story of the miracle of provision for the crowd of 4000 plus people. I want to look at this story tonight and draw out principles that we can use in our daily relationship with God which will help us increase our faith.
First Jesus saw the need and had compassion for the people. Jesus was aware that they had been with him for 3 days listening to him teach. The people were so hunger for the spiritual food he was giving them that their physical needs seemed to take a secondary position. This is every pastor and teacher’s dream, to have people so hungry for the Word that they won’t leave and spending 3 days listening to the teachings was nothing to them. Jesus cared for their spiritual and physical needs and he asks us to do the same for people today. He had compassion on them and was concerned that they would not be able to physically make it back to their homes because they had not eaten. Jesus saw the need and he had a plan on how to meet it. The disciples did not seem to see the need of the people or they would have come to Jesus earlier to mention it to him. Perhaps they too were enthralled with his teaching and eating was not a priority or they had their own stash of food that they were not sharing with 4000 people. Which reminds me of a story my nephew’s wife told of their daughter who is about 3. They found her one day sitting behind the couch with her little table and bag of Cheetos eating them all by herself. No one else was invited and she was secretly devouring the Cheetos without any concern about sharing them. We all tend to have times when we don’t feel like sharing something we really enjoy and maybe the disciples were in the same frame of mind. Jesus pulled the disciples together to talk to them and present the need. I wonder if Jesus was hoping that they would remember the feeding of the 5000 and would present a similar solution to the problem. This was the disciples’ opportunity to respond in faith but we will see that they were not on the same page as Jesus and their response was probably disappointing for Jesus.
We need to let the Lord open our eyes to the needs in front of us and with that vision have the same compassion that Jesus had for the multitude. 4000 needy people would overwhelm most of us, but meeting the needs of one person is much more doable but often does not require much faith to see the need met as we probably have the resources to meet the need. This past summer I took a group of people to Panabaj to show them the refugee camp and introduce them to the people who have lived there for almost 4 years. One of the men was greatly moved by the living conditions of the 200 people who are still there waiting for their homes to be built in another area. He was moved by compassion for the physical needs of the families and told me that he wanted to bring food to them. There were other people in the group that saw the needs but they had a different response. When the group returned home, Chuck began to tell people of the need and raise funds to be able to do a monthly food distribution. He saw the need and like Jesus had compassion for the people. I believe that God will give each of us opportunities to see needs that move our hearts with compassion for the people. We all don’t carry the same burdens but God gives each of us a burden for specific needs in people’s lives. Jesus was well aware of the need of the people and he wanted the disciples to not only see the need but take responsibility to meet the need. It was not enough to simply acknowledge the need and then walk away from it hoping someone else would do something or the people would take care of themselves. What needs has God placed before you? Do you see them and is your heart moved with compassion to meet the need?
The setting of a miracle.
If you want to see a miracle happen in your life, you have to be in a setting where only a miracle will change the situation. Jesus and his disciples were in a perfect place for a miracle to happen. They were in a desolate place where no food was available. Plus there was not enough food among the people sufficient to meet their needs. The setting for a miracle is often a very uncomfortable place with no human solutions. Most of us do not like to be in these places but God seems to place us at the end of our resources so we can grow in our faith to see the miraculous happen before our eyes. The disciples had been in a similar situation before with even more people, yet they did not remember or had not learned the faith lesson from the other miracle of feeding 5000 people. To them it was another impossible situation that they could not meet and did not know how the need would be met. So if you want to live a life of miracles you have to be willing to be placed in situations that are beyond your ability to meet. Are you in a desolate place where the demands or needs are greater than your ability to meet? You are in the place where miracles can happen! The past couple of days I have been meeting with Ana and Manuel who are in need of an absolute miracle of healing. They have gone to the hospital in Guatemala City Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday for evaluation and treatment for Ana’s injury in which she suffered a broken hip that has not healed and is now developing cancer in her pelvis. I have been crying out to the Lord for a miracle for her and I will continue to pray that the miracle will happen soon. The doctors do not have a solution some have said they would not even attempt to do surgery. It seems like the only doctor that can do what needs to be done in the Great Physician, Jesus. As difficult as this situation appears, they are in a perfect place for a miracle to happen.
The Cost of a miracle.
Jesus asked his disciples how many loaves they had and it is implied they either donated them to Jesus or he took them. Seven loaves of bread was enough to give the disciples each a little food until they arrived at their next destination or place they could get food. Jesus was asking them to sacrifice what they had in order for the miracle to take place. What do we have to help meet the needs of people and are we willing to give it sacrificially and freely when Jesus asks us to give? Do we hold back and hoard things when the Holy Spirit is tugging on our hearts to freely give so that he can do the miracle that is needed? This is where our faith has opportunity to grow. We have to be willing to give what we have to meet a need before we can expect God to do a miracle of multiplication. If we lack faith in the God of miracles and multiplication we will hold back. Some miracles will cost us money, resources, time spent in prayer and other things the Lord may be asking of us. When we step forward in faith to meet the need we step into the realm of the supernatural where the God who operates in faith will begin to do what we cannot do. Do we really believe that God will do a miracle, is our faith completely resting in his faithfulness to meet needs?
I worked with a Pastor in Saltillo, Mexico during our summer outreaches. When I first went to his church, it was a little scary to be inside as the ceiling was sagging very badly and I feared the roof may collapse. The church was not growing and it really needed a miracle. The Pastor caught a vision for the church and the people. He saw the need they had to have a better facility that would be attractive to people. He rallied the people with the vision of what needed to happen and challenged them to give and trust God to help them raise the finances needed. He set the example by selling his only vehicle and donated all the money toward the construction of the church. He was willing to give sacrificially and freely because he had faith that God would respond to help meet the need of the church. The members of the church were inspired by his faith and they responded by giving and raising funds. Today this church is completely changed, not only the physical structure but the spirit of the church has changed. It is truly a miracle what has happened.
While on outreach we visited with Pasto Mario of Calvary church in Almolonga where the video, “Transformation” was filmed. If you have not seen the video you need to as it is an incredible story of how God moved in a community that was united in prayer to see it changed. We met Pastor Mario at the school the church has built and is continuing to build. He told us a little bit about how it came into existence. He noticed in his church that they were not reaching the new generation of youth. Adults were coming but the youth were not and it bothered him. He saw the need and he had compassion on the youth. He said he told the Lord he was willing to sell his car and his house to help finance the construction of the school but the Lord did not require it of him. The church did not have the money but they began to pray that God would do a miracle. A man came to visit him and asked him what he needed: a new home, new car, clothes etc. All things that would benefit and make his life easier. He could have said yes to any and all of these things but he told the man he needed money to reach the youth and the best way to reach them was through a Christian school. I believe this man was from Japan and he donated a large sum of money to purchase land and construct the school. The Pastor was willing to sacrifice what he could have received in order to meet the need of the youth. God honored his sacrifice and his faith and a Christian school now exists to reach out to the youth of Almolonga.
The partnership of a Miracle.
After Jesus received the bread, he prayed and gave thanks to God. He then broke the bread and the miracle began to happen. The bread multiplied right before the disciples’ eyes. The disciples got to partner with Jesus as he sent them out to distribute the bread to the people. Can you imagine how exciting this had to be for them? Not only was it awesome to see the multiplication but to be able to give the bread to people who were hungry and see the expressions on their faces must have been unforgettable. It is so rewarding to be able to meet people’s needs and to see God working miracles to make it happen. God did all the work but the disciples got the pleasure of distributing the miracle to the people. From Mark’s account the bread was just the first course, the appetizer, because fish were also found and they were multiplied as well to meet the needs of the people. When you hang around with Jesus you are bound to see and experience many miracles. What a privilege and joy we have of partnering with Him in the work of the ministry where miracles happen. Sometimes we get to rejoice in the miracles that God does through people’s lives with whom we have been involved. It is exciting to see how God is doing the miraculous through people we know. When we were in San Pablo we stayed with Pastor Antonio and his wife Kati. One night he began to tell us about some of the miraculous things that have happened in his life and in his church. His church had some very humble beginnings but God has provided financial miracles to enable them to buy property and build a new church. But God is also doing supernatural things among the people. A couple of years ago we presented Pastor Antonio and his church 3 giant carrots that came from Almolonga. I remember giving these to the church and stating to them that God was going to do miracles among them just as he did in Almolonga. Pastor Antonio reminded me of this when he was sharing his story. About a year ago a young child of one of the members of the church died while the service was happening. Pastor Antonio summoned the help of some of the DTS students from Chico and they laid hands on the dead baby and prayed for him. The baby came back to life and just a couple of weeks ago the church had a celebration of the one year anniversary of the resurrection! Recently, a lady who has been coming to the church began to manifest demons in her home. Pastor Antonio took a couple of his leaders over to the house to pray and as soon as they were there she began to talk in a man’s voice and make strange motions with her body. The leaders were frightened and they ran out of the house, they had not seen anything like this before. Antonio stayed and prayed and the lady calmed down but it was not over. Antonio had to come back again to pray more until the demon finally gave up and left the woman. She is at complete peace and is continuing to come to the services. We all rejoice with Antonio and for me I felt as though I was partnering with him in the work that God has done in the church. I give God all the glory and thank Him for allowing me to share in the joy of the miracles that are happening. The life that you touch may be a life that will be filled with miracles that you will get to share in.
God wants to give us faith building experiences in which we see the miraculous happen. The disciples at this stage in their lives did not have eyes to see, ears to hear and faith to believe for the miraculous. But all of this changed over the course of Jesus’ ministry on earth and even more so when they disciples received the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit. God wants our faith to increase and I believe he desires to do many miracles through our lives. Miracles are not just an add-on to our Christian life, they are meant to be a vital part of our experience with God on a regular basis. He is a supernatural God and I believe He wants to do more miracles through us to demonstrate his compassion and care for needy people. He is doing awesome things throughout the earth and I am greatly encouraged by the testimonies of the miracles that are happening. Bill Johnson of Bethel Church in Redding, California recently told of a miracle in which a man who had metal rods in his back to support his spine was able to bend over after being prayed for!
I am hungry for more miracles in my life but I also understand that for the miraculous to happen I have to be willing to be placed in situations that are desolate, deprived of human resources and dependent upon God to intervene and do the miraculous. I have to have eyes that see needs and respond in compassion. I must be willing to give sacrificially whatever God requires of me if I want to see the miraculous. Finally I must place my faith in the faithfulness and goodness of God’s desire to do miraculous things to meet the needs of people and bring glory to Himself.