Musings on Miracles

Yesterday my daughter and I were talking about the stories we were raised on–you know the stories we Mormons tell in YW and Sunday School and Seminary. She said she wished that all the stories in the YW manual hadn’t ended “happily ever after.” You know what I’m talking about. A person has only enough money to pay their tithing or the rent and they choose to pay their tithing and miraculously the rent money appears. Those stories are real. I know they happen. I’ve been the recipient of those kinds of miracles. But I also know that sometimes you choose to pay tithing instead of rent and nothing miraculous happens. Or does it?

As I look back on life and the myriad of experiences I’ve had there were more “rent money missing” events than there were “rent money appearing” events. But even in the “rent money missing” events micro miracles occurred that enabled us to endure and/or manage.

I remember praying fervently and with all the faith I had that my husband wouldn’t be drafted during Viet Nam and leave me alone with two young children. I pleaded with the Lord and did everything I could possibly do, but he got drafted anyway. It was tough. We suffered. We were separated for six months. His salary was cut substantially making our tithing, house and car payments, utilities and food more than his income. But somehow each month we made it through. We still don’t know how. There was never an unexpected check. There was never someone who out of the blue gave us money. But we paid our tithing. Paid the other bills, and no one foreclosed on us. Monthly we worried and fretted, but monthly we survived. It’s not a miracle we can tell a story about because we don’t know how it happened.

As Mariah and I talked yesterday, I thought about the many miraculous stories I’ve heard in Church. I don’t doubt a one of them, but I agree with her that sometimes we need to tell stories about the times grand miracles didn’t save the day. Sometimes we need to hear that the only thing that happened is that the person managed to hang on despite the tragedy. But we need to realize that, too, is a miracle.

Often the only miracle the Lord sends is the Spirit whispering softly, “It’s going to be all right. I'm with you.” That’s why it is so important to be still and listen even in times of adversity.