Can You Believe It?

Ah Lord God! Behold thou hast

made the heaven and the earth by thy

great power and stretched out arm, and

there is nothing too hard for thee:

Jeremiah 32:17

...With men this is impossible; but

with God all things are possible.

Matthew 19:26b

Not too far from where we live, there is a “Ripley's Believe It Or Not.” This particular peculiarity has been a part of Americana for many years. It had to happen that eventually, this icon of oddity would show itself in public display form of some sort. This local display isn't the only one to be found as there are other such “museums” across the country, especially where tourists gather.

However, allow me to mention some “believe it or nots” from Scripture. I believe for many years, we have almost been glossing over events in Scripture that even in our modern day would blow our minds if we heard of such things happening. Some things would be quietly kept within the confines of family and close friends, but there are some events that couldn't help but be very public and might even make our television evening news. We read of Bible events and almost shrug our shoulders as we move on to the next verses.

I think of Abraham being asked by God to sacrifice his son Isaac. I believe God really wanted to see if Abraham would be obedient and planned all the time to come to his rescue but Abraham didn't know that. Don't you think Abraham would have noticed a ram in the thicket next to the altar he built if there had been a ram in the vicinity when he arrived? God tested Abraham and when He saw Abraham's obedience, a ram appeared to take the place of Isaac. Ask Abraham if that wasn't a “believe it or not” incident in his life.

What about David and Goliath? We've heard of this event in David's life since we were old enough to sing, “Only a Boy Named David” in Sunday school. He was just a kid, a kid not only up against a grown man and enemy, but the enemy was a giant. David had a sling and a few stones. He didn't have a rifle, army tank, hand grenade....rocks...that was it. Come on now...if David's victory wasn't a “believe it or not”, I don't know what would be.

Then there are those three young guys who stood up to leaders of Babylon. They refused to bow down to the king and were condemned to die in a fired up furnace. As you read the incident, they didn't have to be dragged to the door of the furnace. They had such faith in God that He would take care of them that in they just went. After so much time, they were allowed out of the furnace...yep, not even the smell of smoke on them. Observers had also noticed a fourth man in the furnace. We know that was the Lord Himself in there with those young men. Today, these guys would be writing books and on promotion tours speaking about this event....no, on second thought, I don't think they would, for with their character and integrity, they wouldn't have wanted to take one ounce of glory from God.

Along with them, we have to mention Daniel. Ever been to a zoo and taken a good look at lions in their special outdoor landscaped pens. Their roar is enough to make my blood run cold. Daniel had been found praying in a public way when he had orders not to. Because of that, he was condemned to a lions den. Let's be real. The lion keepers didn't exactly feed those lions well or throw a lot of food in the den with Daniel....Daniel was to be their steak dinner. The next morning though, there sat Daniel with all of those kitty cats with not a scratch on him. Today, the news would read “believe it or not.”

There are  many other incidents in our Bibles that are so remarkable. The list would be a very lengthy one if we listed all of the miraculous events that are beyond human understanding. What about:

• The children of Israel going across the Red Sea on dry land...no mud to be seen.
• A mob of people on a hillside being fed with only five loaves and 2 fishes
• Anyone that was raised from the dead
• An earthquake that opened prison doors to free Paul. An earthquake is a public event.
• Destruction by fire of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah
• Are we so used to all of these evens that we no longer sit back in wonder. I realize we believe God can do anything. The Bible itself is a miracle, no matter what physical form it takes... it is a miraculous book. It has been kept and preserved down through the centuries and is still THE all time best seller...miraculous in itself.

But the greatest miracle of all was not that Jesus was born under very unusual and miraculous circumstances although that was miraculous. It didn't have to do with His miracles of healing, feeding or walking on water as wonderfully miraculous as they were. For me personally is the miracle is that He chose to die for me...yep, me with all my sin, faults, warts, and attitudes. For me...this is the greatest of the greatest and if that weren't enough, three days later, He came out of the tomb his friends had lovingly put Him in after His death.  I guess we believe this would make today's headlines, but I have serious doubts about that. Look at all the trouble the Romans went to in order to cover up what happened at that tomb. The world today would probably respond the same. All in all, what Jesus chose to do for you and me was the greatest “believe it or not” that we will never comprehend.

The next time we read our Bibles, let's view it's miraculous events with a little more appreciation of the greatness and might of our God Who can do anything. If He can do all of those things in the lives of those recorded for us, think of all He stands by waiting to do for us. Better yet, let's remember our own miracles brought about through our miracle-working God. We've all had them...it's just that they would never make the evening news, but they were miracles none-the-less. The same God who worked in the lives we see on pages of Scripture is the same God Who works on our behalf. We are such blessed people...believe it or not!!!

Thank You Father for the wonderful ways You have made Yourself known in my life. For every ounce of protection and provision, I thank You. For the miraculous way You have worked in my life, thank You. I love You. Amen