2016-06-30
I was raised in the Christian Science church, a New Thought religion blending Christianity and Eastern mysticism. Growing up, I’d heard my share of taunts about my family’s religion. Some people even insinuated that my faith was un-Christian. I tried not to take such criticism personally, since I felt secure about my beliefs within my heart. Besides, after becoming an adult, I attended different churches, both traditional and nontraditional. Each place offered me something of value, but alone, none of them echoed my deepest beliefs. I did my best to see the divine spark of God within each person I encountered, regardless of whether that person shared my spiritual beliefs. Although people of various faiths pray differently from each other, I’d always felt that when we pray, we’re all drinking from the same water from which miracles spring.

A tiny baby sea lion helped me to really know that we are all one in spirit and that praying together unites our hearts in a powerful way. As I was walking on the beach near my Newport Beach, California, home, I saw a small brown animal as I neared a long row of rocks known as “The Wedge.” Soon I recognized it as a baby sea lion, and I saw that something was wrong with him.

I sat on the sand next to the sea lion. With his flippers, he pulled himself closer to my side. The little guy’s breathing seemed terribly labored, and I sensed his exhaustion and fear. I remembered that a large group of sea lions lived on a floating platform off the end of The Wedge. They were hovering nearby, looking toward shore where the baby was stranded. I assumed that the baby must have been separated from his mother. Intuitively, I placed my hands above the sea lion and visualized Christ energy coming in through my head, out of my fingertips, and into his tiny body. I prayed for assistance from Jesus and the angels.

Just then, a lifeguard rushed to my side. With a loud voice and abrupt movements, he told me that he’d telephoned an animal shelter to take the sea lion to a marine-life preserve in another seaside town. As he spoke, the sea lion rushed under the shelter of a nearby rock formation. The lifeguard’s intense and fearful energy obviously frightened the little animal. The lifeguard took out a stethoscope and attempted to place it on the sea lion’s chest. However, the animal hissed and barked as if about to bite. Embarrassed, the lifeguard walked away and mumbled that he’d go watch for the animal shelter truck to arrive.

I realized that something needed to be done. If the animal shelter took the sea lion away, he had little chance of ever reuniting with his mother. I fervently prayed to Jesus for help. As I prayed, the sea lion rejoined me and I continued to send him healing light through my fingertips.

I opened my eyes as a young man gently approached the sea lion and me. The man smiled at me as he carefully sat next to us. The sea lion peacefully remained lying on his side. I explained the situation to the young man, and he immediately understood that we needed a miracle if the sea lion was to be reunited with his mother before the rescue truck arrived. A man of faith, he agreed to join me in prayer.

The young man noticed the position of my hands as I prayed. I was still sending healing energy through my fingertips to the sea lion, and he asked, “Are you doing some sort of spiritual treatment?” When I replied, “Yes,” he explained that his mother was involved in nontraditional healing and so he recognized that I was conducting “pranic healing” on the sea lion.

When we went back to praying, the young man suddenly said, “Are you sure you’re praying to the real Jesus?” He looked at me with a combination of fearful judgment and compassionate concern.

I fingered the crystal cross around my neck and smiled at him reassuringly. “Oh, I’m very sure that I’m talking to the real Jesus.”

The young man smiled genuinely back at me, and said, “I guess it’s true that whenever two or more are gathered in his name, miracles can happen.” I agreed, and we went back to our joint prayers.

Time was running out, though. The animal rescue truck was surely on its way to retrieve the little sea lion.

Then a sound to our left suddenly made us look up. There, on the top of The Wedge, stood a man with long, wild gray hair. A blinding white light glowed around him, which made it difficult to see his facial features. He climbed down The Wedge rocks surefootedly. Since only an empty parking lot was on the other side of the rocks, it startled me to see him appear out of nowhere. The man didn’t say a word or look at us. We silently watched as he knowingly took charge of the situation. He grabbed a long piece of seaweed and tickled the sea lion’s belly. The sea lion protested but also moved toward the shoreline a few inches.

My young companion put up his hand, as if to question the older man’s actions, but I stopped him and said, “This is good. This is the miracle we prayed for.”

The old man continued to tickle the baby sea lion, who responded by inching toward the ocean water. Within minutes, the man had coaxed the little animal back into the sea. His task finished, the man walked away without looking at us or speaking.

The young man and I sighed as we watched the sea lion swim in the direction of the floating platform. Soon the little fellow was reunited with his family. We smiled as he swam away with them. Five minutes later, the animal shelter truck pulled onto the beach sand. My companion and I agreed that we’d witnessed a miracle. I then hurried to catch up with the old man and thank him for his kindness, but he shrugged off my attempts to compliment his actions. Instead, he waved me along with a smile that conveyed, “Go in peace.” I walked away from him thinking, This man is an angel. And silently I gave thanks for such a remarkable response to the loving prayers that the young man and I had offered together.

My life was becoming more peaceful, as I was learning to focus on the similarities that unite me with all people, regardless of their faith. It took a tiny animal to really show me the way!

I had learned from a sea lion that God hears all prayers and answers them in the most unexpected ways when we pray together from our hearts.

Meditation
In this mystical moment, could the miracle have also been about offering the opportunity for more understanding between Doreen and the young man? Do angel animals carry out divine assignments designed to heal?

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