Miracles Unseen

So, I had the day off yesterday and it was an uncharacteristically sunny day here in Mukilteo so I went down to the beach to read. I set up my little area and, after reading for a while, sat up and just watched the waves and the ocean. I started to think about my life and where it had taken me, my plans with Rusty, goals, and life in general. As I was thinking I was looking out at the ocean when I saw a seal!

Now, I love marine biology (I love everything about the ocean) and even though I have seen a seal almost every time down at that beach by our house I still get so excited. I looked around at the completely packed beach to see the reactions of everyone else, but nobody else had seen it. I was kind of confused because it was the closest to shore that I had ever seen, and there were so many kids and parents there that I was sure one of them would have seen it. But nobody had. There were a lot of seagulls out there on the water as well, and I'm sure that they simply thought it was just another seagull. Something ordinary. They missed the miracle.

I looked back out at the seal and watched it slip away under the water and thought about how that happens in our lives. If we are not looking for something, we can completely miss it. I started thinking about little miracles that have happened in my life that I might have missed: finding a house to buy that was perfect for us, finding a good job in Provo, finding good jobs here, finding housing here, Rusty's internship, my sister Beckie moving back home in record time... There are so many. It would be easy to simply call these things coincidence or just plain luck, but I know that they are something more. God gives us what we need in our lives, and also more than we need: He will give us miracles, the seals in the water, if we are looking. If not, we may pass by some of His greatest gifts and blessings.