God Is Still Performing Miracles

Dedication This book is dedicated to my wife Jattie, my daughter, Carol, my grandson Derrick (wife, Tamekia), and my granddaughter Stanisha (husband, Terrell) A special dedication goes to my great-granddaughter Faith and my great-grandson Micah. IN MEMORY For introducing me to Jesus at a very young age, a commemorative dedication goes to my deceased parents, Johnny and Susie Smith. For bringing joy to my life, a very special dedication goes to my great-grandson Malachi who deceased, due to complications, shortly after birth. Introduction Have you ever read the Bible and maneuvered around the many miracles that God performed in the Old and New Testament? Has the thought ever crossed your mind that God is no longer performing miracles (signs and wonders) in the 21st Century? After all, you are an active Christian in your Church: You serve on the choir, you don’t miss choir practice, you attend church every Sunday (unless you are sick); you are a tither; and you attend Sunday school nearly every Sunday. Furthermore, you also attend Prayer Meeting once a week. As a result of your faithfulness, I am sure you have heard fellow Christians testify about the miracles God has performed in their lives. In fact, given your track record, you have probably questioned God as to why He isn’t performing similar miracles in your own life? Are you on a journey and life seems to have left you behind? Are you bewildered because you need a miracle but God appears to be so far away? Are you living in a state of depression because of anxiety? Do friends come with good intentions but they do not provide you with the answers you need? During their visit, do you feel depression overshadowing you and want them to just leave? In retrospect, have you ever thought to yourself, “If they knew what was going on in my mind, they would just leave?” Have you ever felt like some visitors brought additional baggage and left you more burdened down than you were in the first place? Have you ever had visiting friends who sometimes rub you the wrong way; to the point where you feel additional tiredness setting on your shoulders after they leave? When you are feeling down, do you look to your spouse to kick in but he/she cannot fix your state of mind; because only you and God know exactly what you are going through? Do you sometimes pray to God but feel like you cannot get a prayer through? Have you ever felt powerless as you journey through your low valley experiences? Could it be that you have not established a true love relationship with God? Do you really trust God to do what He says He will do for you? While these are only questions to ponder, it’s the decisions that we make that truly counts. I am thankful to God for parents who consistently reminded me of how “prayer changes things”. Please allow me to remind you that God is still in the miracle performing business. All you have to do is go to Him in prayer because in Hebrews 13:5 (KJV) He has promised to never leave you… In my daily devotional reading of the Bible I have found that if you need HOPE, PEACE, JOY or answers to any questions, the Bible is the “Answer Book.” The mere preparation to read the Bible provides me with PEACE and understanding beyond measure. This book is filled with nuggets of treasure depicting God actually performing miracles. I’m a retired African Methodist Episcopal (AME) minister who spent several hours of preparation and Bible study priming for sermons. I believe it is important to spend specific time to study the Bible under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. I can assure you that you will discover that there is so much information provided; concerning what the “Answer Book” has to say about your personal valley situation. I wrote this devotional with the intention of sharing specific passages of scripture, depicting God’s performance of miracles in the Old and New Testament. I would like to admonish you to always remember that you are a child of the King, therefore it is vitally important that you know as much as possible about your Heavenly Father. From personal experience, I can guarantee you that spending time reading God’s Word will change your outlook on life. Therefore, I invite you to designate allotted quiet time to study the specific scriptures in this devotional, extracted from the “Answer Book.” I’m praying that this devotional will bring about a transformation in your life that will enhance your relationship with God. You will find my personal experiences with the King of Kings which will substantiate how the same miracles that were performed years ago are still being performed today. In 2015, I had a near death experience after I took medication, prescribed by a medical doctor employed by one of the best hospitals in my area. I was given an overdose of morphine which transformed my body (mind) into another world. I could not talk, feed myself nor walk. I was seeing things through the eyes of a drug addict. I experienced flashback situations that occurred when I was in Vietnam through what appeared to be present day real life moments. Even though I retired from the paper industry years ago, I re-lived vivid episodes of still being at work. In addition, my mind told me that the entire world wanted to kill me. Upon being admitted to the hospital, I was diagnosed with kidney failure (both of my kidneys had shut down) resulting from the morphine overdose. My kidney test was at an 8.8 count and the attending physician told my wife that I would have to be placed on dialysis the next day. My wife went home and called every prayer partner she could think of about my overall medical condition. The next day when she arrived at the hospital, the attending physician entered with a flock of residents in training at 7:00 a.m. He told my wife that it could not be explained medically, but my kidney test dropped from an 8.8 count to a 5.5. My wife assured the doctor that she knew what had happened. She pointed toward the sky and said, “It was my Jesus, He answers prayer and He is still in the miracle working business.” It was amazing to witness how the entire flock of interns agreed with my wife. Over the course of the next few days my kidney count dropped to a normal count of 1.6. We are still praying for the residual morphine to be purged from my system and yes your prayers are solicited. I have made special reservations for you to journey with me on an exciting adventure, specifically devoted to select scriptures that contain miracles in the Old and New Testaments. Acknowledgements I am grateful to God for allowing all of the experiences that have occurred in my life and for giving me the opportunity to share them with others. I honestly appreciate my wife, Jattie and all that she has done to support me through the years. She has been my cheerleader, my encourager, my companion and my queen through the good and the bad; she never gave up on me. My daughter Carol has been of great assistance and encouragement throughout this process as well. My grandchildren and great-grandchildren adapted to my life situation for which I am grateful. I especially thank Teresa Branch, editor, for taking time to proof these God giving words of my life. For pep talks when I was discouraged, I want to thank little Jattie. Last but not least, my greatest appreciation goes out to Evangelist Orinell Simmons