God wills that every Christian life be a miraculous life. The truest meaning of the word “Christian,”
or “anointed one,” implies the miraculous presence of the Holy Spirit.
While my 54 year-ministry has witnessed numerous disappointments and failures on my part, I have also been blessed by astonishing manifestations of the Holy Spirit that can only be termed as “miraculous.” Looking back over a half-century of pastoral work I am able to say without hesitation that the time spent at all five churches I served began and ended with a specific “word” from the Lord. The choice of where I went, how long I stayed, was never left to me. Because these decisions were directed by the Holy Spirit, I was supremely blessed in every case. When crisis came in some of those congregations, I could rest in the assurance that I was there by divine appointment.
In speaking of the “Spirit-led” life, I wish to emphasize that this benefit is available to all believers--not just ministers. Housewives, truck drivers, doctors, professionals of every sort and common laborers, should anticipate God’s miraculous leadership in the ordinary routine of their living. And it is important that we realize this leadership is not limited to “spiritual” matters only. God wills that every Christian life be a miraculous life. It is wrong to concentrate our attention on physical healings or the Spirit’s more spectacular works and fail to appreciate His other benefits. In my own experience, there were numerous times when little incidents spoke more powerfully to me about God’s presence than did the bigger blessings. In this way, ”We look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.” II Corinthians 4:18. Let me illustrate what I mean about being led by the Holy Spirit:
Once, in Rome, I was escorting a group of Americans through the Forum area, was below ground in the old political prison, when an elderly lady in our party fell and fractured her hip. For the moment, I panicked, not knowing how to get help or whom to call. Rome is a city of millions. We were scheduled to fly home the next day and the lady insisted that she not be taken to the hospital. Without knowing why, I suddenly left her, raced up the steps, and began running down a crowded sidewalk to a huge, circular intersection a block away.
