DO YOU BELIEVE IN MIRACLES?
        
              Do you believe in miracles?  I do.  By their very nature,
        they cannot be interpreted.  There is no scientific or rational
        way to explain them.  
              Many of the miracles in the Bible are inexplicable.  The one
        that fascinates me the most is the parting of the Red Sea in
        Exodus.  How could the sea pull back long enough for the Hebrew
        people to pass through and into safety on the eastern shore while
        the Egyptians were inundated with water?  Some scientists believe
        that the shallowness of the Red Sea allows for it, under certain
        conditions, to become shallow when a particular wind blows from
        the West.  This is pure hypothesis, yet it could be true.  I
        would rather not accept this theory.  I prefer the miracle
        interpretation.
              The Feeding of the 5000 is another one that seems beyond
        belief.  How could five loaves and two fishes feed such a
        multitude?  Some theologians believe that the people present that
        day did not receive food directly from the Lord's hand, but in
        actuality, shared what they had with one another, and therein,
        the 5000 were fed.  I still prefer to believe that the miracle
        was done that day.
              During a spiritual retreat I attended about a year ago, I
        experienced a small but significant miracle which caused me to
        begin to believe that not just in biblical times are humans privy
        to such phenomena. 
              We were preparing for breakfast the last day of the retreat. 
        One of the members of my group informed us that we were to have
        pancakes for breakfast.  He had overheard one of the cooks
        telling someone else in the shower that this was to be our fair. 
        Now this individual spent most of the weekend attempting to find
        out what was coming next.  You see, during the retreat, we were
        encouraged to take off our watches, give up control to those who
        were facilitating the retreat, and forget about the concerns of
        the world.  John, my group member, spent a significant amount of
        time attempting to find out what was coming next.  He was elated
        that we were having pancakes.  
              When breakfast was served, we received cold and warm cereal,
        coffee, and toast, but no pancakes.  John was upset and told the
        waiter that he thought we were having pancakes.  The waiter said
        nothing and left the table.  John mumbled something under his
        breath and proceeded to eat the cereal.
              A few moments later, the waiter returned with a large stack
        of freshly made pancakes.  He said, "Here are the pancakes that
        you ordered."  John looked dumbfounded.  He said, "But I didn't
        order any."  
              I sat for a moment and watched John squirm in his chair. 
        The waiter just stood there.  John said, "I can't eat any
        pancakes now, I'm full."  The waiter did not respond.
              I said to John, "That's okay, John, we'll share them."  I
        took the pancakes and passed one to each of the eight people at
        our table.  We each ate one of them.
              Now on the surface this may not seem too unique, but there
        is more.  
              A few moments later, the waiter returned with another plate
        stacked high with more freshly baked cakes.  John balked again
        and said he hadn't ordered the first plate of them let alone the
        second one.  The waiter did not respond.  I again took the plate
        and passed the pancakes around to all those seated at our table. 
        John had his fill of pancakes.
              Now how do I know this was a miracle?  I believe it was,
        because there were no other tables being served pancakes.  John
        had asked for them, but only in a joking way.  Somehow, he was
        receiving a very special message:  "Be careful what you ask for,
        you just might get it."  
              John did not believe it was a miracle.  He discounted it as
        a coincidence, a joke being played on him by the cook and his
        team.  It was more than that.  I believe John was receiving a
        very special message from a power greater than himself that
        asking for something can be answered for whatever reason.
              A year later, I continue to watch for such miracles around
        me.  I know a man who consistently prays for people who are ill
        and though he is reluctant to share with me whom he is praying
        for, he tells me that in the past year everyone that he has
        prayed for has been healed.  Now I don't doubt his word, because
        some of those for whom he has prayed have appeared on our
        concerns at church, and as he said, they have all returned home
        from the hospital.
              The illnesses suffered by the numerous individuals he prayed
        for were all serious.  One woman had such a rare form of cancer
        that only the Bethesda Hospital in Maryland was able to identify
        it.  The woman is alive and well and completely healed.  She
        didn't even have to undergo radiation or chemotherapy.  Another
        man underwent quintuple bypass surgery on his heart.  He suffered
        four previous heart attacks, but this last one was the most
        serious.  He is now home and living a normal life, and for a 75
        year old man, doing rather well.
              Prayers do lead to recovery.  You and I are encouraged to
        pray for those who are suffering, but we often do not believe
        that they work.  We often assume praying is just part of the
        ritual of religion.  Yet, if for a moment, we do believe that our
        prayers can result in the creating of small miracles, imagine how
        different our lives would be.
              I am not sure how convinced you are, but there you have it. 
        Keep your eyes and ears and heart and soul open to the
        possibilities.  You don't need to travel to Cana or to Medjugorje
        to experience a miracle.  Somewhere, somehow, right before you
        now, small miracles are taking place.
              What will be the sign?  Look for what is inexplicable,
        irrational, and unscientific.  Miracles are not tricks, but a
        manifestation of that power which is greater than any of us.  
              They are all around us if we can dispel human doubt and
        just, believe.