Then He got into the boat with them, and the wind stopped; and they were utterly astonished, for they had not gained any insight from the incident of the loaves, but their hearts were hardened.

Have you ever prayed something along the lines of “God if you do _________, then I will believe you”? Sometimes we believe if we could only see God move in a certain way or give us a physical sign of His presence then we would believe Him and trust Him more. Over and over the disciples had seen Jesus show up in a magnificent way, but their hearts were still hard. From an outside point of view, it doesn’t make sense: they had all the evidence necessary to believe Jesus, but the problem wasn’t something a wonderous sign could remedy. The seed of doubt ran deep, and witnessing a miracle wouldn’t solve it. The problem was in their hearts.

In the very beginning, when the problem of sin came into the picture, little changed externally but everything had changed in the hearts of Adam and Eve. Where they once had community with God, now they had distrust. Where they once looked to God as their provider, now they were determined to find a way forward on their own strength.

There is no question, God can do miraculous and wonderous things. He can move mountains, heal the sick, and defeat death. The question is, will we open up our hearts to allow the miraculous work to be done in our own lives? Will we surrender to Him to allow the marvelous change He wants to do inside of us, or will our hearts grow hard even as we see Him move?

• When have you opened up your heart to Christ’s miraculous work inside you?
• Have you ever cried out to God to do something external so that you could trust Him? What happened?
• Pray and open your heart up to allowing God to miraculously change you through His Spirit.