If there ever was a time mom could have used a miracle, it was right now.

Mom worked two jobs to try to pay the bills and/or put food on the table or put a roof overhead or clothes upon our bodies; with the ever-rising cost of gas (and the upward swing of prices as a direct result), makings ends meet in our family was getting harder and harder to manage.

At one time, mom was able to pay the bills on time; now collection agents were threatening to repossess the car and house because the bills were running a month or two behind.  In addition, the electric company was threatening to shut off the power, and in the approaching heat of summer, this couldn't have come at a worse time.

That was when the miracles started occurring.

Three months ago, Jim (my step-dad; our real dad died three years ago in a car wreck) was outside, mowing the grass, when he happened to look down ... only to see a brown wallet lying on the grass next to our big cherry tree in the yard.  He picked it up and was shocked to find a stack of fresh, crisp $100 bills.  There was at least $1,000.00 ... and possibly more than that.  At the sight of the money, Jim's usually tanned face turned white.  There was no clue or note as to who had left the money.  None. 

Jim quickly ran into the house, waving the wallet and tossed it into mom's lap, explaining what he had found.

There was no I.D. in the wallet.  No credit cards or Social Security card either.  Just the money, and the money only.

Jim told mom to call the police to see if anyone had lost any money.  Mom gave the police her full name, telephone number, and street address. 

This was three months ago when this happened, as I'd already mentioned earlier in this story.

The bils were still there.  The bank was making squeaking noises of possible foreclosure of our house.  Money was still very tight.

Well, yesterday, the twentieth of June, the police called and said that the money Jim Price had found had gone unclaimed: nobody showed up to get the money; it was still sitting there at the police station.  The money, in kind, was ours.  OURS!!

We thought it had been $1,000.00.  WRONG!!  Turns out it was more than that:  it was $10,000.00!  More than enough to pay and catch up on all the bills.

We mailed the bills off this morning.  P.I.F.  Paid in full.  We no longer owed any money to the bank, electric company, and the one credit card that mom had maxed out.  We were in the clear!

This morning, after we mailed the bills, mom brought two scratch off tickets from the local state lottery.  Spent only a paltry $4.00 total and won (drum roll, please ...) $10,000.00!!

Such carrying on!!  Such hollering!  Such joy!!  I think the neighbors could hear mom and Jim screaming from down the street!

When we were once threatened with eviction or ending up homeless on the streets, we can now take that dream cruise to Alaska that mom and Jim had been wanting to go on (but couldn't afford).  We can now buy several weeks of groceries (or even a month or two) AND get the kids new shoes and clothes ...and STILL have money left over!  It has been an amazing full months!  God does and WILL provide if you just believe and/or trust in Him enough!