Acts 9

So far in my quest to read the Bible in a year, I’ve read all of Genesis and half of Exodus. It’s not too shabby for three weeks or so, I have to say, but today I needed a break from Old Testament lore and opened up the book of Acts. I landed in Acts 9, the story of Saul’s conversion. The chapter ended with Peter, through the power of God, raising Dorcas (Tabitha) from the dead. Saul’s conversion to Christ was a miracle climaxed with him meeting Christ on the road to Damascus followed by blindness for three days. Jesus then told Ananias to go to Saul (now renamed Paul) and heal his blindness. When I read through these today, I felt such a rush in seeing the power of God in action, but then I thought about today. Why don’t we see miracles like that today?

Sometimes it’s hard for me to understand the Bible telling us that with the faith of a mustard seed we can move mountains. I mean, where are all the miracles with so many marriages ending in divorce? Where were the miracles when I saw my grandmother whither away from Alzheimer’s disease? I’ve seen God move as I’ve noted in past posts, but I’ve never seen anything like what the apostles did in Acts. Why?

I sat down and thought about it. God hasn’t changed since the Old Testament. The Holy Spirit hasn’t gone anywhere. What is the common denominator here? Well, to be honest, we are. Humanity is the only thing that has changed. We don’t live like God can do these things anymore. We don’t live with the faith of a mustard seed much. Often times when the going gets tough in our lives where faith is required, we get going. We run. I run. It’s about faith.

Today, when we see a faith-healer on television or if one comes to town, we’re instantly skeptical. We don’t really pray for miracles anymore. If someone talks about them happening, we tend to not believe them or think they are eccentric. However, the Bible is truth, God’s word, and if it happened then it can happen now. Maybe if we lived by faith more, we’d see more of what the power of God can do in our lives. That is my prayer: for more faith. I want the faith to lead my household into the arms of God. I want the faith to change the lives of people around me. I want God to use me to be someone’s miracle.