The miracle that changed a little girl's life forever

Saint Teresa of Lisieux it was never the same after Christmas 1886.

Therese Martin was a stubborn and childish child. Her mother Zelie was terribly worried about her and her future. He wrote in a letter: “As for Therese, there is no telling how it will turn out, she is so young and careless… her stubbornness is almost invincible. When she says no, nothing changes her mind; you can leave it in the cellar all day without making her say yes. He would rather sleep there ”.

Something had to change. If not, God only knows what could have happened.

One day, however, Therese staged a life-changing event, which occurred on Christmas Eve 1886, as recounted in her autobiography, Story of a Soul.

She was 13 and had stubbornly clung to the Christmas traditions of a little girl until then.

“When I got home to Les Buissonnets from midnight mass, I knew I had to find my shoes in front of the fireplace, full of presents, as I had always done since I was little. So, you can see, I was still treated like a little girl ”.

“My father loved seeing how happy I was and hearing my cries of joy as I opened each gift and his pleasure made me even happier. But the time had come for Jesus to heal me from my childhood; even the innocent joys of childhood had to disappear. He allowed my dad to feel angry this year, instead of spoiling me, and as I walked up the stairs, I heard him say, "Teresa should have outgrown all these things, and I hope this will be the last time." . This struck me, and Céline, who knew how very sensitive I was, whispered to me: 'Don't get off yet; you will only cry if you open your presents now in front of dad '”.

Usually Therese would do just that, cry like a baby in her usual way. However, this time it was different.

“But I was no longer the same Teresa; Jesus had completely changed me. I held back my tears and, trying to keep my heart from racing, ran down to the dining room. I took my shoes and joyfully unwrapped my presents, always looking happy, like a queen. Dad no longer seemed angry now and was enjoying himself. But this was not a dream ”.

Therese had forever recovered the fortitude she had lost at four and a half years.

Therese will later call it her "Christmas miracle" and it marked a turning point in her life. It pushed her forward in her relationship with God, and two years later she joined an order of local Carmelite nuns.

She perceived the miracle as an action of God's grace that flooded her soul, giving her the strength and courage to do what was true, good and beautiful. It was her Christmas gift from God and it changed the way she approached life.

Teresa finally understood what she had to do to love God more intimately and left her childish ways to become a true daughter of God.