Once Upon A Miracle!
Paul White's nationally distributed syndicated column, “Once Upon A Miracle!” is published in 22 publications across seven states. This includes the following newspapers and digital publications: Midland Daily News (MI), SFGate (CA), Seattle PI (WA), Connecticut Post (CT), Laredo Morning Times (TX), Huron Daily Tribune (MI), The Telegraph (IL), and more. In this week's article, Paul encourages you to re-discover miracles that have happened throughout your life, and to embrace the feelings of gratitude they create in you—and become an expert miracle finder!
Miracles are a funny concept. Some of us believe in them and some of us don’t. Those that believe in them seem to utilize a completely arbitrary definition to determine what does, or doesn’t, qualify as an actual miracle. If I had to commit to my feelings about miracles, I’d place myself in the category of “simple belief.” Why? Because miracles can play such an important role in our life with regards to our emotions. You know, emotions like hope, gratitude, love, compassion, caring, and hope. I know I said hope twice in that last sentence and I did that because I’m not a fan of hopelessness and its destructive properties. Plus, a simple belief is one that anyone can logically utilize. No need for us to complicate things like we like to do in so many areas of our life.
Many people believe that all miracles are deity or divinely inspired, kind of like any miracle has to come from God. I’m okay with that but personally, I feel like the miracles I witness come from divinely inspired humans. They may or may not be people of faith, but they do something that results in a desired outcome at a point in time someone else is hoping they will. Let me provide some examples.
Anytime someone has surgery, there are risks involved. Even if the risks are low, there’s a chance something could go wrong. If any surgery is successful (a miracle), it’s because of the knowledge and skill sets of the doctors, nurses, and support staff. All are miracle workers. But what about the people who educated those individuals who helped them acquire their knowledge and skill sets? Don’t those people contribute to the miracle? What about the parents who believed in, and encouraged them to pursue a life helping others through medicine? Aren’t they ALL a part of the miracle of the successful surgery?
Miracles begin with the HOPE of experiencing one in a particular situation. Then we begin to negotiate with ourselves. This is where emotions like love, compassion, and caring come into play. We tend to utilize if/then statements at this stage. IF (insert desired outcome) will occur, THEN I promise to be a more caring, loving, and compassionate person. Any successful outcome will move us right into the gratitude emotion which research suggests is one of the most powerful emotions we have at our disposal. It’s also then that we are most willing to embrace the simple belief that a miracle occurred.
Standard issue for my Dad and all of the men he fought with over in Europe during World War II was a small, foldable shovel. It was part of the pack he carried. When I asked him what it was for, he told me a soldier would use it to dig a foxhole deep enough for them to be below ground level to avoid enemy fire. He told me he believed that more men committed their life to Christ in those foxholes than in all the churches combined. It’s also where they all came to believe in miracles. He witnessed the death of many of his fellow soldiers, some within six feet of where he was.
The war experiences that my Father shared with me are probably why I’ve developed such a simple belief in the miracles that I’m surrounded by each and every day. Of course, I’ve trained myself to LOOK for them and to be an individual that’s willing to celebrate the tiniest of successes. Why? I hope it’s obvious. It brings me great joy, even in the midst of a world that is struggling in so many different areas. Why can’t some of these television series producers come up with a plot line featuring “expert miracle finders” out there in the world finding miracles that are right in front of the rest of us.
So how about YOU? If you’ll pause for a minute and examine your life…yes, your entire life going as far back as you can remember, there are miracles there. It’s impossible to live life without experiencing them, especially if you’re willing to utilize “simple belief” strategy. Re-discover those miracles and embrace the feelings of gratitude they create in you. Re-live the hope, love, compassion, and caring associated with the miracle and how the miracle made you a better person because it occurred. Hold onto that gratitude your miracle memories create and be prepared to shift your emotions into the Hope gear and give it the gas. Use a new set of eyes each day and be on the lookout for the simple miracles that occur all around. Become an expert miracle finder and be ready to be part of a new television series that will win all the awards. Why? Because people will tune in to experience the joy that hope and gratitude provide. Hey…I Believe In YOU! GiddyUp!
Paul White is a guest columnist and author. Purchase his life-changing book “The Answer Discovery – How to Change the World by Helping Others…and Ourselves” at http://bit.ly/PaulWhiteAmazon. If you’re interested in getting in touch with Paul, please submit an inquiry via our Contact Page.