Extraordinarily Ordinary

“You have to check out the awesome picture I took today,” I said to my daughter; a shadow had fallen perfectly on my Bible, creating the image of a cross.

She looked at the photo and said, “Really cool! But… it’s obvious how that happened if you were sitting near a window with grids.” She elaborated matter-of-factly, sharing that it wasn’t like I had witnessed some “act of God.”

I quickly defended my intention, making it clear that I wasn’t suggesting a miraculous encounter. I was merely inspired when the cross appeared on my Bible, and I thought the picture was a keeper.

As the day went on, I couldn’t seem to shake her words, reflecting on the term “act of God.” I acknowledged that we tend to reserve the phrase for something BIG. A burning bush, booming-voice-from-the-sky kind of moment.

What if we allow ourselves to accept the fascinating “small” things, the things we can easily overlook, as acts of God? The changing leaves, the intricacy of a spider web, a child’s belly laugh, a blossoming flower, a kindred connection with another person, a juicy apple, our very breath, a magnificent sunset, an expression of love, the subtle beauty of a shadow.

We may not often experience an earth shattering divine moment, but God’s presence abounds within the simplicity of a typical day.

This week I’d like to challenge all of us to look more closely for the extraordinary in the ordinary, the miracle in the mundane. We may be surprised, in the course of just one day, how often we witness an act of God!

“I believe in Christ like I believe in the sun. Not because I can see it, but by it I can see everything else.” C.S. Lewis