The Miracle of Enough

I got clued in to the "Miracle of Enough" by Laurel Christensen Day's talk at Women's Conference in 2015. She explains that she misinterpreted the miracle of the loaves and fishes to mean that Christ multiplied the meager food in order to fill the five thousand. However, when you examine the scriptural records of this miracle, not a single one of them--not Matthew nor Mark nor Luke nor John--uses the word "multiply." Sister Day suggests that the food was not changed to fill the people but that the people were changed to be filled by the food. They ate a little, and it was enough. She calls this the Miracle of Enough.

I experience this miracle on a daily basis. So many times, I have waited for blessings that never came or answers that weren't what I wanted or expected them to be. In those times, God has helped me to take comfort in what the blessings I already have, the blessings I was designed to have, even though they weren't the blessings I thought I needed. He has given me the challenge of counting my blessings so that I will realize that I have enough.

The most dramatic example of this miracle involves my work at the Provo Temple. We have the busiest shift in one of the busiest temples, and sometimes there just aren't enough workers to complete the work...or so it seems. God makes sure that His work gets done, one way or another, and our small workforce is always enough under His power. It's the Miracle of Enough.

One of my favorite scriptures also testifies of this miracle. There are two versions of the scripture, which was originally part of the Sermon on the Mount. Matthew 6:34 states, "Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof." I used to understand this verse to mean, "Don't worry about tomorrow; today is hard enough to take care of without trying to take of tomorrow, as well." But the version of this verse in the Book of Mormon sends a starkly different message. 3 Nephi 13:34 reads, "Sufficient is the day unto the evil thereof." In other words, "I will give you enough strength and enough power to handle the trials of the day." It is a promise from Christ to perform the Miracle of Enough. Sufficient is the day. Isn't that beautiful?

And this miracle works both ways. Not only are God's offerings enough but He makes our offerings enough. A few days ago, I made an offer on a lovely house. The sellers ultimately accepted a better offer. It was enlightening to realize that God's ways are different from the world's ways. In the world, our offerings will never be enough. We are imperfect, and the world demands perfection. Instant perfection, much of the time. But God takes our imperfect offerings and makes them perfect. He accepts the widow's mite, a small and imperfect offering, and He makes it enough. That, too, is the Miracle of Enough.

Have you witnessed the Miracle of Enough? How has it affected your relationship with God?

May Favorites

I only have one favorite this month. READING! With a lighter teaching load this month, I've been devouring books to satiate my appetite for words. With several visits to the library each week and several more visits to the fitness center (where I have been doing most of my reading), I read or listened to at least 8 books in May.

Listens

1. A Conjuring of Light by V. E. Schwab
2. Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein

Reads

1. On Slim Unaccountable Bones by Emma Lou Thayne
2. The Class from the Black Lagoon by Mike Thaler
3. The Final Solution by Michael Chabon
4. Star Wars: Guardians of the Whills by Greg Rucka
5. The Lifted Veil by George Eliot
6. Brother Jacob by George Eliot

Of all these books, the one I would recommend the most highly is Code Name Verity, a book that I read last year, too. It is the story of two best friends during World War II: a British spy and a British pilot. They get shot down over France near the end of the country's Nazi occupation and are instrumental in the liberation of one particular city. Oh, and they're both women. And it's sad. But my favorite aspect of this book is the clever structure: for most of the book, you are reading what the spy is writing to her Nazi captors. That first-person narrative displays her unique personality whilst also hiding lies and secrets and maybe even code. You'll laugh and you'll cry and you'll want a best friend like Julie or Maddie to invade enemy territory with you.