Do You Believe in Miracles?
-Timothy Anger

Do You Believe in Miracles?

My name is Timothy Anger, and this is my story.
I should not be alive. On January 18, 2022, I had driven to a meeting in Harrisburg, PA and was seated among my colleagues. Suddenly I fell off my chair and hit the floor hard. The men in the room thought I had a stroke and called 911. I was taken to Hershey Medical Center nearby where it was determined that I was actually experiencing an “Aortic Dissection” (where the main artery that leaves the heart to send blood to the brain and the rest of the body suddenly deteriorates and breaks.) It is fatal in about 97% of the cases, and many of the rare survivors have neurological damage. I underwent a 7 hour surgery while my family sat in a nearby waiting room wondering what would happen to me. After the surgery, I was in ICU on life support machines to control my heart, lungs, and kidneys.
My family was told to hope for the best but prepare for the worst, as my chances were slim. The story sounds bleak, but God was at work. He had already orchestrated that I would be at the right place at the right time to be taken to one of the best heart hospitals in the state. Some of the best doctors were in the hospital and called “stat” to the operating room. The aortic dissection was discovered while it was happening so it could be dealt with. A few more minutes could have been fatal. I am glad it didn’t happen while I was driving to Harrisburg!
“My family was told to hope for the best but prepare for the worst, as my chances were slim.”

I lay in ICU under an induced coma for about 10 days, while my family wondered if I would come out of it, and how much loss of ability I would live with. But my family, friends at church, and friends around the world were praying for me. My pastor, who had heard the surgeon’s report after surgery, told our congregation that if I lived and came back it would be a miracle. People continued to pray for that miracle.

When I woke up in ICU, I was unaware of what I had gone through until my family filled me in. I was weak and unable to communicate due to all the wires and tubes connected to me. But God continued to protect me and allow me to recover. After 6 weeks in the hospital and ten days in a Rehab hospital to learn how to get around with a walker, I was able to go home!

Do I believe in miracles? Yes! It is a miracle that I survived an aortic dissection, have no side effects, and have regained abilities, including playing the piano. A miracle is something God performs that is against the normal laws of nature. It points to the power of God and glorifies Him. Yes, I believe my recovery is a miracle in direct answer to many prayers!

"Yes, I believe my recovery is a miracle in direct answer to many prayers!"
Another reason I believe in miracles is that I have seen lives transformed by the Gospel. I personally know people who were addicted to alcohol or drugs who found freedom when they came to Jesus. Many people are trapped by fear, selfish pursuits, and pride; but Jesus offers peace and purpose for living.

There are others, who like me, were religious and self-righteous, but did not have a vibrant, living relationship with God. I grew up in a pastor’s home and tried to live an exemplary life. I avoided the world’s vices and prided myself in my good works. But I lacked the confidence that I had that personal relationship with God that I saw others had. I began to seek after God in His Word. I had to come to a point of surrendering to Him, giving up control of my life to let Him take the wheel, and put my full trust in what Jesus had done for me, not what I was doing for Him.

You see, all of us have sinned. God even says that our efforts at good works are an abomination to Him as they are cloaked in pride and self-will. God hates sin and must judge sinners. But God showed His love toward us, in that He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to take our place and die on the cross to pay the penalty for our sin (Romans 5:8). But not everyone accepts His free offer of salvation. We first have to acknowledge our sin and our lack of ability to make ourselves right with God. Then we have to humble ourselves to accept His free gift of salvation. That is the Gospel.

The miracle is that when we put our faith and trust in Jesus as the Gospel requires (Ephesians 2:8-9), He completely changes us to be a “new creature.” Old desires pass away, and everything becomes new (2 Corinthians 5:17). In talking with Nicodemus in John 3, Jesus described salvation as being “born again.” It truly is a miracle to see a person’s life transformed.

I was an adult before I realized that I had “religion” but not a relationship with God. Once I humbly trusted in Jesus as my Savior, my heart and my motives changed. I have come to the firm conviction that God is real, He answers prayer, He has a purpose for my life, and He changes lives today. I believe in miracles, for I believe in God!