This is claimed to be a true story:
A Miracle of $1.11
Tess was a precocious eight year old when she heard her mom and dad talking about her little brother, Andrew. All she knew was that he was very sick and they were completely out of money. They were moving to an apartment complex next month because daddy didn't have the money for the doctor bills and their rent. They didn't just need a surgeon for Andrew --- only a specialist could save him now --- and it was looking as if they were not going to be able to get the much needed finances. After trying desperately but to avail to be approved for a loan, Tess heard her daddy, with whispered desperation, say to her tearful mother, "Only a miracle can save him now."
Tess went to her bedroom and pulled a glass jelly jar from its hiding place in the closet. She poured all the change out on the floor and counted it carefully. Three times, even. The total had to be exactly perfect. No chance for mistakes. 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 busy talking with another gentleman.
Tess twisted her feet to make a scuffling noise. Nothing. She cleared her throat with the most disgusting sound she could make. No good. Finally she took a quarter from her jar and banged it on the glass counter. That caught the pharmacist's attention.
"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?"
The pharmacist's brother stooped down and asked the little girl, "What kind of miracle does your brother need?"
"I don't know," Tess repliedwith her eyes tearing 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 audibly. "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. That's 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 your brother is and allow me to meet your parents. Let's see if I have the kind of miracle you need."
The man was Dr. Carlton Armstrong, a neuro-surgery specialist. The operation was completed without any charge and it wasn't long until Andrew was home and doing well. Mom and dad were happily talking about the chain of events that had happened.
"That surgery," the mother whispered, "was a real miracle. I wonder how much it would have cost?"
Tess smiled but didn't say anything. She knew exactly how much it cost --- one dollar and eleven cents --- plus the faith of a little child.
Matthew 18:4 "So anyone who becomes as humble as this little child is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven." NLT
(This little girl humbled herself by taking all the money she had been saving and, without her parents knowing, went looking to buy a miracle for her brother.)
Matthew 17:20 So Jesus said to them, "Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you. NIV
(This little girl had so much faith that all it would take was exactly $1.11 and she could buy her brother a miracle. Her faith has made her brother well.)
