The physicist Albert Einstein once famously said “There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as if everything is.” The truth is that miracles are everywhere – the sun’s rising and setting, the blooming of flowers, the gorgeousness of nature and all of its inhabitants, the brace of stars we see in an infinite night heaven, the chance that love will gift us with its vagaries and possibilities, and the birth of every child. When five deer recently showed up on my front lawn, I simply had no words, but I knew I was witnessing a bona fide miracle on my quite populated suburban street and took a silent moment to revel in their unmitigated and showstopping beauty. When a friend casually remarked that our attitude determines our altitude, I realized that so often I had fallen into paroxysms of sadness and despair when my life was derailing from the hoped-for train track. The remark did not fall on deaf ears this time – my New Year’s resolution was “expect a miracle,” and that has been exactly what I’m doing – and hope you, dear reader – will too.

The word “miracle” is from the Latin word “mirus” meaning wonderful. In Hebrew, the word for miracle is “mowpheth” which also means wonder. Miracles generally are considered extraordinary events that have come about through divine agency. They are the visible results of divine intervention – if you subscribe to a faith-based perspective. Alternatively, non-religious perspectives would have it that miracles are fortuitous events, statistically unlikely but beneficial. In my own life, I have not been a stranger to miracles. My husband’s physicians advised that he would not be able to father a child – months later, I was decidedly pregnant. When our son was born, he was in pediatric ICU a week later with four medical diagnoses: congestive heart failure, a thrombus in the brain, electrolyte imbalance and jaundice. We were informed he would not survive by 13 doctors on his team. Only his cardiologist told me “I believe in miracles, and I’m going to say unequivocally that Nils will make it.” Four months later, we brought our boy home and he joined the Miracle Children’s Network, having amazingly overcome all of his challenges. Since I am a person of faith, I believe in miracles, only I stopped thinking about their occurring because I became so mired in the grind of daily life and managing a million things that felt overwhelming.

My friend’s observation helped me get on a path of spiritual renewal as did a book which I read entitled “You Can…Expect A Miracle.” Dr. John Hinwood, an author and international speaker, practices what he preaches. In a journey that has lasted more than 25 years, he has handed out small white cards to almost everyone he has met which simply say “expect a miracle.” He argues that recognizing miracles which are abundant everywhere and letting them rekindle your sense of wonder effectively shifts your perspective so that you newly contextualize a world where everything is, in fact, a marvel. If you try to believe that something wonderful, unexpected or seemingly impossible can occur in your life, that positive mindset creates the ground for inviting those events in – despite any challenges that may rise up and threaten to derail you. By embracing this outlook, I have watched my own life transform.

Here are some of the steps I have taken to help in expecting miracles:

1. Maintain a positive outlook. Focus on the good things in your life and believe firmly that good things can happen. When my son was accepted to graduate school at the University of North Carolina, we were living in northern California and had to be in Greensboro on short notice. I realized I wouldn’t be able to drive 3,000 miles across the country for a variety of reasons and confided this to a gentleman in the school’s Department of Housing who had become familiar with my son’s file and his special needs status. He told me that he had a weekend free and could fly out to California and drive us across the country himself. That is exactly what ended up transpiring – a thoroughly unexpected miracle. A complete stranger angel had come into our lives and delivered us safely to the steps of the university.
2. Practice gratitude – appreciate the blessings every day in your life.
3. Be open to new experiences and try new things, without reservation.
4. Actively work towards what you want to achieve and give generously to others of your love and time.

A favorite writer of mine – Wayne Dyer – has said “I am realistic – I expect miracles.” That credo has become mine as well.