When Miracles Happen

Pardon my language, but 2022 is starting off to be quite the shit show.  I'm emotionally exhausted and it's only January 4th. And I'm only experiencing the roller coaster ride virtually. People we care about have front row seats and are just trying to hold on.

I need to remind myself that where there is hope – even the smallest amount, there is faith. And where there is faith, miracles happen. 

It sounds trite, but I believe this to be true. I must. Or why would I spend so much time praying?

As we transition from one year to the next, our hearts are hurting for those who are hurting even more. We have a friend who lost his father, a friend who lost his son, and a whole community who lost a beloved soccer coach. And that's just the tip of the 2022 iceberg.

But in this same time frame, we've also seen miracles – after endless hours of praying, that is. 

A neighbor adjusted wonderfully to a critically needed kidney transplant. A friend survived a freak stroke and was home within 2 days. Our close friends heard the news today their college-age son is cancer-free! Someone we love survived 30 days in the hospital over the holidays and is home. Another someone we love survived 15 hours of emergency surgery yesterday and into the wee hours of this morning.

To all of these, we say thanks be to God. The road to recovery will be long for all of them. But they're still here among us. And we'll still keep praying for them.

You and I know we don't always get the answers to our prayers that we want. People die expectedly and unexpectedly. But God sends human angels to give us hugs of comfort. We don't understand the "why" of most of the tragedies in our lives. And we probably never will.

It's frustrating. It's devastating. And it's out of our control.

That's especially challenging. Somehow, we need to find the strength to keep hope and faith alive. And look for miracles – big and small – in our everyday lives.

They're there. We may have to wipe away tears to see them, but they're there. 

I pray they'll keep coming. For all of us.