Christian Reflection and Prayer

A little girl went to her bedroom and
pulled a glass jelly jar from its
hiding place in the closet..
She poured the change out on the
floor and counted it carefully.

Carefully placing the coins back in
the jar and twisting on the cap, she
slipped out the back door and made
her way 6 blocks to Rexall's Drug Store
with the big red Indian Chief sign
above the door. She waited patiently
for the pharmacist to give her some
attention, but he was too busy at this
moment. Tess twisted her feet to make
a scuffing noise. Nothing. She cleared
her throat with the most disgusting
sound she could muster. No good.
Finally she took a quarter from her
jar and banged it on the glass counter.
That did it!

'And what do you want?' the pharmacist
asked in an annoyed tone of voice. I'm
talking to my brother from Chicago whom
I haven't seen in ages,' he said without
waiting for a reply to his question.

'Well, I want to talk to you about my
brother,' Tess answered back in the
same annoyed tone. 'He's really, really
sick....and I want to buy a miracle.'

'I beg your pardon?' said the pharmacist.

'His name is Andrew and he has
something bad growing inside his head
and my Daddy says only a miracle can
save him now. So how much does a
miracle cost?'

'We don't sell miracles here, little girl.
I'm sorry but I can't help you,' the
pharmacist said, softening a little.

'Listen, I have the money to pay for it.
If it isn't enough, I will get the rest.
Just tell me how much it costs.'

The pharmacist's brother was a well
dressed man. He stooped down and
asked the little girl, 'What kind of a
miracle does your brother need?'

' I don't know,' Tess replied with her
eyes welling up. I just know he's really
sick and Mommy says he needs an
operation. But my Daddy can't pay for
it, so I want to use my money.'

'How much do you have?' asked the
man from Chicago .

'One dollar and eleven cents,' Tess
answered barely audible.
'And it's all the money I have, but
I can get some more if I need to.'

'Well, what a coincidence,' smiled
the man. 'A dollar and eleven cents---
the exact price of a miracle for little
brothers.'

He took her money in one hand and
with the other hand he grasped her
mitten and said 'Take me to where
you live. I want to see your brother
and meet your parents. Let's see if
I have the miracle you need.'

That well-dressed man was Dr. Carlton
Armstrong, a surgeon, specializing in
neuro-surgery. The operation was
completed free of charge and it wasn't
long until Andrew was home again and
doing well.

Mom and Dad were happily talking
about the chain of events that had led
them to this place..'That surgery,' her
Mom whispered. 'was a real miracle..
I wonder how much it would have cost?'

Tess smiled. She knew exactly how
much a miracle cost...one dollar and
eleven cents...plus the faith of a little
child. In our lives, we never know how
many miracles we will need.

A miracle is not the suspension of
natural law, but the operation of a higher
law.

A MIRACLE FROM GOD!