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How many ears do you have?

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Two!

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How many ears do you need?

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That's a trickier question.

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Of course, a boy or a girl[br]can hear with only one ear.

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Ales was born in Belarus[br]with hearing in only one ear.

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Ales was born a month early.

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He didn't weigh as much as other babies.

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When he was three months old,

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his mother took him to a doctor for tests.

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During those tests, the doctor found

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that Ales could only hear with one ear.

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Ales' mother was shocked.

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She worked with children who were deaf.

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She loved them just as much[br]as she loved children who could hear.

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But she never imagined that her own child

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wouldn't be able to hear with two ears.

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She thought that the doctor[br]must have made a mistake.

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Because she worked[br]with children who couldn't hear,

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she also knew how to run hearing tests.

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So, she ran a hearing test on little Ales.

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The tests showed that Ales[br]really couldn't hear with both ears.

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But Ales' mother[br]still didn't want to believe it.

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She took him to a special hospital

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for children with hearing difficulties.

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The doctor ran his own test.

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Ales' mother watched[br]the tests on a monitor.

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She saw deep inside Ales' ears.

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One ear looked normal; [br]the other one didn't.

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She saw that nothing[br]could be done to help.

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She began to cry.

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The doctor, however, [br]didn't want to see her tears.

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"Why are you crying?" he said, gruffly.

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"Your son can hear with one ear, [br]and that's enough."

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Back home, Ales' mother cried and cried.

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Then she talked to God.

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"Why did You allow this to happen?"[br]she asked.

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After a while, she turned on[br]some music on her phone.

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A beautiful hymn started playing.

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It was called, <i>Nearer, My God, to Thee.</i>

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Ales' mother had heard the hymn[br]many times since she was a little girl.

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But for the first time, she understood

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that God really was near her.

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It felt good to know that God was near.

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But she still didn't want to believe

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that Ales would never hear with one ear.

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She kept on talking to God.

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"You can do anything," she said.

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"If You gave life to my son[br]with only one ear,

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You could heal him[br]and give him life with two ears."

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Three months passed, [br]and Ales' father had a birthday.

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He didn't want a cake for his birthday.

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He didn't want any presents.

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He only wanted Ales[br]to hear with both ears.

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"Our son will hear," he said.

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"God will do this as a gift[br]for my birthday."

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They prayed and took Ales to the hospital

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for another hearing test.

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There was nowhere to sit[br]while they waited.

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Ales' mother carried him in her arms,

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and he felt so heavy.

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Finally, the doctor called them in.

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When he finished the test, he said,

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"Your son can hear perfectly[br]with both ears!"

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Ales' mother couldn't believe <i>her</i> ears.

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She was so happy.

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"This is a miracle of God!" she exclaimed.

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Indeed, it was a miracle.

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Ales' mother had seen[br]inside his ears on the monitor

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three months earlier.

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She had seen[br]that no doctor could help Ales.

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But the Great Physician, Jesus Christ,

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had healed her boy,

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and now he could hear with both ears.

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Ales' father wept with joy at the news.

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He was so happy that God had given him

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such a wonderful gift on his birthday.

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Today, Ales is six years old,

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and he can hear perfectly well[br]with both ears.

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He uses his ears to learn Bible verses.

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He uses his ears to learn songs.

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He would like to use his ears[br]to learn to become a doctor

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and to help other boys and girls.

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He knows that his hearing[br]is a gift from God.