A Miracle or a Workable Plan

A co-worker arrived on the job one morning, years ago, and told us that he had stopped to talk with a man whom he saw every day sitting on the steps of an apartment building. It had become obvious that the fellow was waiting for something or someone, and finally my curious friend decided to find out what he was expecting.

The answer was very simple—to the waiting person—but it left my co-worker speechless. The man needed money, and he believed God was going to send Ed McMahon and the American Family Publishers crew to award him the sweepstakes prize. We laughed a little at that misguided faith, but actually it was more sad than humorous. The chance of winning a major prize in such a contest is less than one in fifty million. How many of those millions do you suppose are thinking that this is the miracle they've been praying for? The chances are good that the winner of multiple millions of dollars will thank God; winners often give a nod to Him. But think of how many others will not get the "miracle" they wanted, and if they really expected it to happen, they may be a little miffed at God.

Miracles do happen. It is very clear to me that only Divine intervention could produce the outcome we experience in some of our human affairs. We see grace and good far exceeding anything we could create, and we see catastrophe averted that we ourselves were unable to prevent. But I have found that it is helpful to be open to every kind of possibility, not the supernatural alone, and to pray, "God, please give me a miracle or a workable plan." During many months, I pleaded in this way regarding a financial need that was reaching critical proportions. I did not have a startling, all-at-once answer, but slowly an idea began to develop in my mind. I pursued it and found there was a reasonable hope of success—in other words, a workable plan. And now, much later, I know that it was indeed God's way of answering. Just because the solution God had in mind required extra effort on my part does not mean it was any less an answer to prayer than winning the sweepstakes prize.

Answers don't come in the same way for everyone. Maybe the man sitting on the apartment steps will some day win an amazing amount of money. Or maybe there will be a job he can do or community resources he can find. If we depend on God, He will give us the miracle we need—or a workable plan.