I recently ran across an article from 2019, that investigated the claims of a young man that was suing his father. The young man had been in a terrible car accident that nearly killed him, At the time of the accident, the boy was quite young, and his parents were approached to write a book about his miraculous recovery, a recovery that claimed the young boy had died, went to Heaven and repeatedly had visions of angels. Sadly, the boy’s parents divorced and now the young man lives with his mom. Both are suing the father for allegedly fabricating the entire story for his own financial benefit. When interviewed the father denied any fabrication and insists that God knows what happened and that there is no need for him to defend himself over his actions.
What saddened me the most about the article is that the publisher, Tyndale House, took the book out of print out of fear, when the son and mom denied the events happened and it couldn’t be backed up theologically by the publisher’s experts. The theologians said it simply couldn’t have happened as portrayed in the story. Hmm, Is that true? It makes me wonder. We consider God as unchanging in His nature. The bible speaks clearly to this matter, yet, we as humans try to keep God contained in a small package. A package that lists what God can and cannot do. We assume that God in our modern time frame does not do miracles, show up in a burning bush, or tell people to build arks in the desert anymore. In the past He used hands to write on walls, spoke through donkeys and healed people. But what about now? In 2023?
So, is it not possible that God still does these sorts of things? Do we really think that we are the ones who have outgrown a God who does the impossible? Has God retired from the miraculous and impossible? Must we follow the theological interpretations of a select few? Yes, of course I believe in proper theological exegetic of Bible passages, but notice I mention proper. Too many people call themselves experts, but fail to understand context. They believe that God’s work that cannot be explained must be negated. They don’t trust experiential evidence of faith encounters. Why? because they cannot explain them. And because they cannot explain them, they put themselves at risk of being questioned over their expertise and mastery of the Bible. So, it is easier to dismiss, rather than believe.
So, what do you think? Does God still perform miracles? Does He still call people through extraordinary ways? Do people visit Heaven and come back, after being resuscitated? Do people see angels? Do people see Jesus? If they should is that a bad thing? After all, Thomas, one of Jesus’ disciples, told the others, that he couldn’t believe in a resurrection without seeing Jesus first hand. And if you know the story, Jesus gladly showed Thomas His scars and let Him touch them. To see if it was all true. Maybe some people need to see to believe a bit better. Maybe for some faith is not blind, but based upon seeing what they believe.
I suspect, that if the truth comes out about the bitter divorce from the article I read, the son is protecting his mom and the mom is simply bitter for being left by her husband. Tragic events, such as the accident that was the result of the father behind the wheel, might have led to a mom’s bitterness. That bitterness can become rooted and grown into resentment. A resentment that the son grew up around and began to change his perspective of his father. What should have been an amazing story of God’s interaction with a child who was injured, led to finger pointing and a broken family. And that is the real tragedy. God Bless, Nancy
Moving Forward 