God moves in a mysterious way
His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea
And rides upon the storm….
Judge not the Lord by feeble sense,
But trust Him for His grace;
Behind a frowning providence
He hides a smiling face.
-William Cowper-
You should have seen the look in the eyes of my best friend, Jake Morris, when he returned from the World Race.
Those eyes had seen sinners moved to repentance, broken lives restored to health, deaf ears hear, and ailing legs dance. He had witnessed the miraculous healing power of God.
As he sat in my basement recounting story after story—his eyes ablaze, his tongue as it were on fire with praise—there awakened inside of me an insatiable hunger to see the Lord stretch forth His hand in miraculous ways in my own life and in my hometown. I didn’t need proof that God was real. The resurrection of Jesus Christ, the infallible scriptures, and my own relationship with Him had proven that to my mind a thousand times over. What I deeply desired was for more of God—more of His power, His glory, His almightiness, on display for all to see. I wanted the prayers of the early church to be fulfilled in our day: “Lord…grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness, while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus” (Acts 4:29-30).
So when in September of last year I departed for my own World Race journey, it goes without saying that I eagerly anticipated witnessing miracles myself.
On the Race, I prayed for the sick. I prayed for the mute. I prayed for the blind. I prayed for the crippled. I prayed sometimes with faith. I prayed oftentimes with doubt. I prayed in public. I prayed in private. I prayed—and prayed some more.
And you know what?
I never saw the mute speak.
I never saw the dead raised.
I never saw the lame walk.
I never saw the blind or the deaf restored—as Jake had witnessed (http://updates.theworldrace.org/?filename=god-heals-in-mozambique-a-testimony).
I never saw a limb grow back before my eyes—as one Racer reportedly saw (http://www.sethbarnes.com/?filename=watching-god-heal).
I never saw someone’s fractured foot healed—which occurred at one World Race training camp (http://updates.theworldrace.org/?filename=healing-at-training-camp).
In short, I never saw the healing miracle for which I had been praying. And to be honest, there were times when I grew impatient with the Lord and weary of praying big prayers.
But I am writing this blog as I near the finish line of my Race because I believe God is good. He is sovereign. He works in His timing and in His way. I do believe He will honor my prayers and answer one day. But whether or not I see Him work as I’d like to see Him work, He is infinitely worthy of my worship, my life, my death, my all.
I am also writing because over these past eleven months I have seen my God do things that have taken my breath away. I find myself singing, “You are the God who works wonders; You have made known Your might among the peoples” (Psalm 77:14).
And so, to commemorate all that the Lord has done, I am writing a series of “grand finale” blogs entitled “World Race Miracles,” in which I hope to tell story after story that reveal the greatness, the glory, the power, and the love of our almighty God.
***Spoiler alert: Stay posted, and I’ll tell you all about His miracles of provision…
