Every time I open my desk drawer, I see it. A plain white envelope with instructions written across the front: “Open on 7-7-15.” A year ago, on July 7, I made a “miracles list” along with my colleagues Dan and Danielle. A list of 12 things I hoped God would accomplish in my life. I sealed it in an envelope with extra tape (hey, you can never be too careful!) and tucked it away to be opened in a year.
Well, last week, the time finally came to take inventory of my miracles. I couldn’t remember what I’d written exactly. I tore that envelope open like a kid on Christmas morning. I got through the layers of tape, scanned the 12 items and…
Oh noooo. Of the 12 items, none had come true! Not completely, anyway. Find true love… see the world… be fearless… write a book… The closest I’d come was reading a book. According to this list, my year was a complete waste! I tossed the letter aside, disappointed.
It didn’t make sense. So much had happened over the past year. I discovered a new hobby in improv. Wrote and edited some pretty cool stories. Connected with fabulous readers across the country. Signed up for hip-hop dance classes–after picking a hobby at random at the start of the year–and had a blast. I hadn’t seen every corner of the world, like I’d hoped. But I traveled to Hawaii and discovered a peaceful home away from home in Florida, where my parents moved for half the year.
All marvelous, wondrous things. All things that never appeared on my list.
Maybe that was the point. The things I didn’t write down turned out to be miracles. Experiences I could’ve never predicted a year ago.
God knew the miracles waiting for me, though, all along. Isn’t it just like him to turn my plans upside down and wow me with his greater ones?
I’m not giving up on those 12 miracles from last year. God’s working on them behind the scenes. In the meantime, I’m going to make a new list to open in 2016. Not to measure my progress. But so I can see how God surprises me!
Last year, many of you joined me in writing a “12 Miracles List.” How did your list turn out? Share your miracle progress reports below!
