All the small things

 ¹ On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus' mother was there, ² and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. ³ When the wine was gone, Jesus' mother said to him, "They have no more wine."

 "Woman,^[a] why do you involve me?" Jesus replied. "My hour has not yet come."⁵ His mother said to the servants, "Do whatever he tells you." ⁶ Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons.^[b] 7 Jesus said to the servants, "Fill the jars with water"; so they filled them to the brim. ⁸ Then he told them, "Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet."
They did so, ⁹ and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside ¹⁰ and said, "Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now." ¹¹ What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him. ¹² After this he went down to Capernaum with his mother and brothers and his disciples. There they stayed for a few days.


  John 2:1-12

 
I have experienced a miracle. For many, my miracle may not sound too miraculous but for me, it was amazing. It was just what I needed at this particular point in my life.



Back in November, I took my three year, as I often do before Preschool, to McDonalds. We always go through the drive-thru because she loves to roll down her window and talk to the people at the windows. As we pulled up to get our food, the young girl at the window handed my drink to me. I took the cup and went to place it in the cup holder when suddenly the top fell off and drink went all down the front of the dash of my car.


I didn't think it was a big deal and told her it was ok. She handed me a bunch of napkins and I pulled into a parking place to clean up the mess. Suddenly the lights in the radio part of my dash began to flicker. The cd that was playing began to make funny noises. I then realized the drink had made its way down into the panel. Within minutes, all the lights were gone. I could no longer see the time, what radio station was playing, which cd we were listening to or control the sound. I wasn't mad but a little irritated. The radio and cds still played but we were blind to the valuable information that the panel brought to us.



It was not a huge deal but as days went on, it became frustrating not knowing the time and having to pull out the cell phone to check. I couldn't adjust the volume so the music was louder in the back than in the front, which caused issues with the kids. It was just more of a headache.



Things like this seem so small to me and not something that I would normally think that God would be concerned about but one day I decided to pray. I just simply asked, "God will you please fix my radio?" I would like to say that in that moment, that the lights miraculously appeared but they did not. Truth be told, I knew they wouldn't. Proof of my lack of faith.



Over the next few weeks, I repeatedly read devotions on prayer and faith. God was trying to show me something but I was not listening. One day it hit me that just because He doesn't give me what I want the first time I ask, that I should not stop asking. I prayed again with a simple "God please fix my radio". This went on for several days and the more I prayed the more determined I became not to give up. I put faith behind that prayer.



On New Year's Eve, I was in my car when suddenly the lights in the dash began to flash. The time, the radio station and song information blinked on for several seconds. Honestly, my mouth fell open and I sat in disbelief for a moment. My reaction; "No Way!" It was as if I could not believe it was happening. I even doubted that it would come back on and stay on. The lights blinked on and off several times. Then finally, the blinking stopped and the lights remained.



It was a miracle. To me, God fixed my car and answered what I thought was a silly prayer. What I am realizing; God does not think that what we find important to be silly.



The other day I was reading about Jesus turning water into wine. The point of the devotion was simply that God finds the things that may think seem small to Him but are important to us are in fact, important to Him.



The writing talked about how Jesus could have performed all kinds of amazing things for His first miracle. He could heal the sick or raise the dead but instead, He turned water into wine. At this point, Jesus was not "famous" yet. He was not invited to this wedding because He was known to perform miracles. None had occurred at this particular time. So why now? Why water into wine? Jesus Himself seemed to think that this miracle was a bit premature. My thinking, as I read becomes that He saw in the eyes of His mother that it was important to her. Tradition back then, did not allow room for this type of error. Running out of wine left a shameful blemish on the reputation of the hosts. Run out of wine and your neighbors could file charges. Jesus cared enough about the people that what was important to them was important to Him. He saw the concern in His mother's eyes for the host and He chose to honor her. To add to this miracle, the only people who knew it had taken place were that of His mother, His disciples and the servants. It was not performed to make Him popular or famous but because He loved.



I'm sure the disciples and the servants never forgot this event. It was a miracle, which displayed God's love and concern for our everyday problems. No matter what we may be facing, nothing is too insignificant for God. He always has time for each of us when we choose to come to Him. When we choose to pray, we too will experience Christ's miracle-working power. Even if all you need are for the lights on your dash to work again. God loves you that much!