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!

Who is "the least" in your life?

I assure you, when you did it to
one of the least of these my brothers
and sisters, you were doing it for me!
Matthew 25:40 NLT

Loving the Least

I remember a poster on a dorm-room
wall during my days in college. The
poster was a picture of a homeless
man lying in a dirty gutter holding a
bottle in a paper bag by his side. The
inscription on the bottom was a quote
from Mother Teresa. It read, "You love
Jesus only as much as the person
you love the least."

For all we don't understand about the
life of Jesus and the true nature of God,
there is one truth that he made
completely clear. The Christian faith
is about service and humility. It's about
helping those who can't help themselves.
It's about loving others more than we
love ourselves—even the most unlovable
among us.

What is the sign of true followers? Is it
the amount of knowledge that we have?
Is it the money we give to missions? the
degrees we've earned? the number of
people we've preached to? the hours
we've spent worshiping in church? the
books we've read or written?

According to Jesus, the sign of the
saved is their love for the least.

It is said that when Francis of Assisi
left his wealth behind to seek God, he
stripped naked and walked out of the
city. The first person he encountered
on his journey was a leper on the side
of the road. He first passed him, then
turned back. He embraced the leper in
his arms before continuing his journey.
A few steps down the road he turned
and saw that the leper was gone. Until
his dying day, Francis of Assisi was
convinced that the leper was Jesus.
Even if he was wrong, he was right.

(I COULDN'T HAVE SAID IT BETTER
MYSELF!)    AMEN

adapted from Embracing Eternity by
Tim LaHaye, Jerry Jenkins and
Frank M. Martin,, Tyndale House
Publishers (2004), p 3

Scripture:

1 Peter 5:10 (New International Version)

10And the God of all grace, who called
you to his eternal glory in Christ, after
you have suffered a little while, will
himself restore you and make you
strong, firm and steadfast.

Reflection:

I remember when I was a kid,
I was always assigned to the
back seat of our car whenever
we went on a trip. I was very lucky,
I had a patient father because my
favorite pass time was asking him,
When will we be there? or Is it
much further? or How many more
minutes till we get there.  And Dad
would always patiently respond,
"Just a little longer....not quite yet....
a few more miles."
You know children tire quite quickly
during long trips, (actually not such
long trips), just as children of God
tire quickly of the troubles of the
world.  But as a Christian I have to
ask myself, What is suffering for a
little while in preparation of the glory
that is to follow.  Because this time
I already know the answer to my
questions, to my sufferings.  It is
God's grace and His eternal glory.
What a goal to look forward to.

Prayer:

Oh Lord thank You for giving me the
answer, Your Son Whose death and
resurrection saved me, and
Who is coming soon, a goal I am
looking forward too.
In Jesus Name AMEN