Maria’s Miracle

Maria Hernandez needed a miracle.

Her husband was in prison for drugs. Her children were growing up in need of closer supervision, but she was working 12 hours a day for National Semiconductor. It seemed to her that things were spinning out of control. That’s when she made her decision.

She would leave San Jose.

Maria went to the prison to see her husband and to tell him her plan. She intended to sell everything they owned, house and all, and move to a smaller town where she could raise their children.

Maria did just that. Friends and relatives helped her sell everything and prepare for the move, but move to where? At that point, some friends suggested Madera. It was small. It was quiet. It would be a perfect place for her to raise her children, so in 1976, Maria and her three children moved to Madera Ranchos.

They found a house on two acres — a dramatic change from San Jose. The children all acclimated to their new environment, especially Deseri, the youngest. She joined a Christian youth group and began attending church. By the time she became a teenager, she opened her heart to Jesus and accepted Him into her life.

Meanwhile Maria worked several jobs, including laboring in the fields. All of her children attended Madera schools, grew to adulthood and were married.

By all accounts, Maria’s family had landed on their feet. It seemed like a miracle, and it was, but there was more to come.

In February, Maria was scheduled for a routine mammogram. The results were not what she had expected. The procedure revealed three growths in her breast. She was going to require a biopsy. Maria left the doctor’s office stunned.

Because of the restrictions imposed due to the pandemic, they couldn’t schedule Maria’s biopsy until May. On the Sunday before the scheduled procedure, she went to church with Deseri.

By that time, Deseri had grown by leaps and bounds in her faith. She became an ordained minister and a chaplain at the Madera Community Hospital. She also became involved in the faith healing movement. At the time of her mother’s health challenge, Deseri was attending the Believer’s Church of Madera.

That Sunday before Maria’s biopsy, Believer’s Church had a guest speaker, Joan Pearce, who had appeared on the Sid Roth telecast, “It’s Supernatural,” as well as her own show, “Now is the time for Miracles.”

During the morning service, Maria went forward to pray for healing. The entire church prayed for her, and Pearce anointed her with oil and laid hands on her.

Maria remembers a warm feeling flowing throughout her body, and when she returned to her seat, she was engulfed with a sweet calmness. All tension was gone.

The next day, her daughter drove her to the doctor for the biopsy. It took a long time because the doctor could not believe his eyes. The lumps that had been there in February were gone — vanished. When they couldn’t find the growths, they performed an ultra sound. Still, there were no masses, so they did a mammogram, and another, and a third. Finally, they gave up and admitted the lumps were gone.

Maria went home and cried out of joy for three days. She had indeed encountered the Supernatural. God had healed her miraculously.

Today, Maria Hernandez has come alive with gratitude. She knows God brought her and her children to Madera and held them tightly. She knows when she was attacked with disease, He obliterated it through the power of prayer. She knows who is in charge, and she rests in that.