TEACH TEACH
DON’T MISS
THE MIRACLE!
It’s easy for us to miss what God’s doing right before our eyes, says missions director Ian Henderson emember when the people of Israel crossed the Red Sea? Rabbis taught that the people of Israel grumbled about walking through mud, even though they were escaping slavery in Egypt. Somehow, despite the fact they saw God miraculously holding back the water, they found reasons to complain. They missed the miracle before their eyes. We say, that’s stupid! I wouldn’t do that! But the reality is, we do. All the time.
Stuck in the mud
Heard it all before
Miracles before our eyes
I don’t know about you, but I’ve heard a lot of sermons – probably thousands. I’ve also sung a few songs – probably tens of thousands. Those sermons, those songs are all full of great truth but here’s something I’ve realised: when you hear something a lot, you stop noticing it. Do you remember the first time you flew on a plane? I do – and I remember watching the air hostess going through their safety routine listening with rapt attention. I needed to know what to do in case of emergency! But I bet like me, once you’d been on a plane a few times, you stopped listening. The stewardesses were still doing their thing, but you were too busy looking to see if you could buy cheap perfume. It’s true of our walk with God too. I’ve heard a few times that God loves me, for instance. It’s still absolutely true. But we can hear it in a great sermon, sing a great song and if we’re really honest, it doesn’t really register anymore. We ‘miss the miracle’ – we fail to see the amazing truth about God simply because we’ve heard it all before.
And then there’s the mud. The truth is, it probably was pretty muddy and just taking the next step was probably very hard work. For some of us too, we’re focussed on the mud because there’s a lot of it. Life is hard – we’re feeling stuck in the mud. We miss the miracle because circumstances make it very difficult not to. But Isaiah 40:26 says this: ‘Lift your eyes to the heavens.’ God says to us, lift your eyes and see the flipping great big walls of water – and remember who is holding those back. He says to us, look at where you’re going and just how far you’ve come. Look again at who this is you serve and follow. What are some of the miracles we miss every day? How about this one: God frees us. Before 1869, when the Bankruptcy Act abolished debtors’ prisons, men and women were routinely thrown in jail by their creditors – it was a normal occurrence. If you hadn’t paid your debts, you could simply be thrown into prison. You could be there for decades, because the prison keeper charged you rent, the bailiffs would charge you for food and clothing, and you’d have attorneys charging you legal fees for their attempts to get you out. All the while your creditor would be adding interest. Basically it was an unpayable debt. Just like that, the Bible tells us that our sin was an unpayable debt. The fact that we have a God who says ‘you are debt free’ is a miracle. Spiritually we are no longer in prison, we are free. It’s a miracle. So look up and see the walls of water either side of you. What is it about who God is and what he’s done that you need to remember today?
GET A SPEAKER
when you hear something a lot, you stop noticing it.
If you would like Ian Henderson or any other Message communicator to speak at your church or event contact Emma Kizlauskas on emmak@message.org.uk
www.message.org.uk/flow ////