It’s Day 2 of the “Miracle Chase Takeover Week”! In today’s post, the Miracle Chasers–authors Joan, Katie and Meb–share some tips and tricks for recognizing and accepting miracles. It’s all about minding those “Miracle Ps”….
Søren Kierkegaard wrote that a miracle is a sign only for those who recognize its significance. Miracles surround us; sometimes we just can’t see them. So the question facing each of us is this–how can we recognize miracles as they unfold in our lives?
Well, the answer might be as simple as minding the three “Miracle Ps”: Perception, Paradigm and Permission. Here’s what we mean by that:
Perception is as important in miracles as it is in life. Remember the iconic illusion drawing by W.E. Hill of the old vs. young woman (pictured left)? Some of us see only the old woman, others see only the young; it takes effort to see them both within the same framework. Miracles are the same way.
Some signs are easy to see and to share. Others are hard; they can be messy, recall a time of strife, fear or uncertainty.
Willa Cather gives us a visceral description of how miracle signs are recognized with our “perceptions being made finer so…our eyes see and our ears can hear what there is about us always.”
- Paradigm, or our personal view of how the world works, clouds our vision where we see only what we expect to see; sometimes blinding us to miracle moments with rationalizations and skepticism.
Nazi refuge and author, Franz Werfel, in his 1943 Academy Award winning screenplay for The Song of Bernadette wrote, “For those who believe [in miracles], no explanation is necessary; for those who don’t believe, no explanation is possible.” Being aware of our personal perspective frees us to expand our interpretation of the cues and signs around us in new ways.
- Permission to share our miracle stories happens when others share theirs. Providing a safe and non-judgmental environment allows the miracle conversation to reach a new level and as a result relationships and personal connectedness deepen. Take it from a book club that we spoke to about miracles.
After we left, the miracle chatter continued–once they were given permission, people didn’t hold back. "We shed some tears, broke through some defenses and connected on a new plane,” the book club reported. “The miracle conversation led to empowerment and our conversation lingered…a deepening awareness and resilience of the human spirit. Unbelievable, except it was in my own living room!"
The cues are out there, all we need to do is open our minds to them, look beyond the expected and share the wonder with others as it happens.
Now that we know what miracles are and how to recognize them, tomorrow we’ll move on to classifying the different types of miracles. Stay tuned!
Have a question for the Miracle Chasers? Simply comment below!
You can read more about Joan, Katie and Meb and their incredible miracle journey in The Miracle Chase.
