Miracle Forecast

A miracle is an event that brings you face to face with God. It is so compulsive that it becomes a milestone in your journey of faith. Whenever you look back at that event, your relationship with your Lord comes to life anew, and you find energy to move on. A miracle, however, is at the same time a double-edged sword. If you do not treat with the due manners, it still becomes a defining moment in your life, not for the better but, for the worse.

"And We refrain from sending the signs, only because the men of former generations treated them as false: We sent the she-camel to the Thamud to open their eyes, but they treated her wrongfully. And We do not send the signs, except to frighten." (17/59)

Ask yourself, if you were given the choice to witness a miracle upon your request, would you really like to see it? You may say "yeah, why not? let's go for it", but as I said, despite the transformative power of miracle, if you don't rush towards God penetrating any intermediaries by reading and trying to understand His words (i.e. the revealed books), if you don't exercise your will to change yourself and your surroundings according to what is pleasing to God, then requesting and witnessing that miracle can be the worst thing you could possibly do in your life.

And [remember] when I inspired to the disciples, "Believe in Me and in My messenger Jesus." They said, "We have believed, so bear witness that indeed we are Muslims [in submission to Allah ]." [And remember] when the disciples said, "O Jesus, Son of Mary, can your Lord send down to us a table [spread with food] from the heaven? [Jesus] said," Fear Allah, if you should be believers." They said, "We wish to eat from it and let our hearts be reassured and know that you have been truthful to us and be among its witnesses." Said Jesus, the son of Mary, "O Allah, our Lord, send down to us a table [spread with food] from the heaven to be for us a festival for the first of us and the last of us and a sign from You. And provide for us, and You are the best of providers." Allah said, "Indeed, I will sent it down to you, but whoever disbelieves afterwards from among you - then indeed will I punish him with a punishment by which I have not punished anyone among the worlds." (5/111-115)

Even then, in times of dire hardship, when there is no glimpse of hope anywhere, we want to see our Guardian with us. We want to feel our Beautiful Benefactor near us. In short, we crave miracles. And our desperate state blocks any rational thought about the consequences of witnessing miracles.

Is it just us, the normal people, who need miracles? No! Even the people chosen by God to proclaim the divine call craved for signs sometimes (first believers to the messengers). Having been shown the clearest signs, however, they were pushed by God into the severest challenges, and in return, they committed their will and lives to the mission given by their Gracious Owner.

Coming back to ourselves today, should we want miracles or should we force our hearts to suffice with what is within the limited sight of reason?

I think it is impossible to imprison human heart, although it is possible to teach a mind not to go too far (i.e. possible to imprison the mind). What is more, being a host for both the rational and the irrational is a state decreed for humans by God, Himself. This implies an invitation to make a call to the All Powerful One.

"And your Lord says, 'Call upon Me; I will respond to you.' " (40/60)

Then, how are we going to ask for a miracle, when we are desperately needing it?

First of all, a miracle is not sent to return you back to your old situation. A miracle is like Noah's Ark; it takes you to a completely new land where you can enjoy your Lord's blessings and explore new avenues. This means you must be ready to say goodbye to the conditions that led you into the misery. You may ask, "why wouldn't I abandon what led me into misery". Yes, it sounds counter-intuitive, but note that it was you, in the first place, who couldn't/didn't do this before. This means that you are either not aware of what really troubles you or not able to do without it. In either case, you slid into the state where you utterly need a miracle. So, now, you must go beyond yourself.

"Indeed, Allah will not change the condition of a people until they change what is in themselves." (13/11)

Along the same line, you must keep in mind that a miracle is not a gift of God so that you can feed your self and find shelter. Of course you would like your basic human needs to be met, but asking for that is not the same as asking for a miracle. A miracle is there in order for you to venture into the unimaginable so that both you and those looking at you can see the hand of God at work.

"And you did not kill them, but it was Allah who killed them. And you threw not, [O Muhammad], when you threw, but it was Allah who threw that He might test the believers with a good test. Indeed, Allah is Hearing and Knowing." (8/17)

Inferred from the verses in this article, it can be said that if you prepare yourself and your surroundings 1- for the taking root and flourishing of extraordinary things, 2- for being trustworthy protectors of signs of God, and 3- to spread the message of love and care that you will receive from your Lord, then you can be sure that you sent an invitation to the Creator of heavens and the earth. Just leave it to Him exactly when and how.

"and whoever is careful of (his duty to) Allah, He will make for him an outlet, and will provide for him from where he does not expect. And whoever relies upon Allah - then He is sufficient for him. Indeed, Allah will accomplish His purpose. Allah has already set for everything a [decreed] extent." (65/2-3)