There was a young girl named Hattie May Wiatt at the turn of the century outside of Philadelphia who was crying near a small church when the pastor walked by. When he asked her what was wrong, she sobbed that there hadn’t been enough room in the Sunday School class for her. Seeing her filthy clothes, the pastor guessed that she may have been turned away for other reasons. He marched her back in and found a place for her in the class. She listened and loved the Bible stories she heard each Sunday after that.
Two years later, the little girl died. When the pastor came to make final arrangements, he discovered a coin purse with her belongings. Inside the coin purse was 57 cents and a slip of paper that said, “To make the church bigger so more kids can go to the Sunday School.”
The pastor told the girl’s story that Sunday in church, and challenged his deacons to raise enough money to build a bigger church. The newspapers picked up the story. And a realtor offered a parcel of land worth thousands of dollars to build the church on. When told that the church couldn’t afford the asking price, he offered to sell it to them for 57 cents.
It would seem impossible to build a church with 57 cents, but that didn’t stop one little girl from trying to create a miracle. Today you can go to Temple Baptist church of Philadelphia and Temple University. Go visit the Sunday School building next to Good Samaritan Hospital, where there is more than enough room for everyone. In one room you will see the picture of a young girl who started it all with 57 cents. Alongside it is the picture of the Reverend Dr. Russell Conwell, who multiplied that 57 cents through countless others.
God had taken the very ordinary donation of a poor child, less than a dollar, and turned it into something extraordinary! It became the driving force that turned the heart of a landowner, motivated the revival of a church and eventually founded a University! All because an ordinary young minister made sure an ordinary young girl went to Sunday School one ordinary morning.
God always sees what is inside of us. We all have gifts, talents and opportunities that He can shape into miraculous moments. We must stop looking at what we don’t have and start looking at what God can do in our lives. (ROBERT MOMENT)