While there was a crowd of refugees in the city...

…one of the strangers, noticing John’s remarkable sympathy, determined to test the blessed man (John the Almsgiver, patriarch of Alexandria, 610–619). So he put on old clothes and approached him as he was on his way to visit the sick in the hospitals (for he did this two or three times a week) and said to him, “Have mercy on me for I have been a prisoner of war.” 

John said to his purse-bearer, “Give him six nomismata.” After the man had received these he went off, changed his clothes, met John again in another street, and falling at his feet said, “Have pity on me for I am in want.” The Patriarch again said to his purse-bearer, “Give him six nomismata.” As he went away the purse-bearer whispered in the Patriarch’s ear, “By your prayers, master, this same man has had alms from you twice over!” But the Patriarch pretended not to understand. Soon the man came again for the third time to ask for money and the attendant, carrying the gold, nudged the Patriarch to let him know that it was the same man, whereupon the truly merciful and beloved of God said, “Give him twelve nomismata, for perchance it is my Christ and He is here to test me.”

Leontius, Life of St. John the Almsgiver, 9

At the Lavra of the Towers...

…there was an elder who practiced poverty to an exceptional degree and yet his particular spiritual gift was that of almsgiving. One day a beggar came to his little tower asking for alms. The elder had nothing but a single loaf of bread which he brought out and gave to the beggar, “It is not bread I want,” said the beggar. “I need clothing.” Wishing to minister to the man’s needs, the elder took him by the hand and led him into his tower. When the beggar found that there was nothing there at all other than what the elder stood up in, he was so impressed by his virtue that he opened his bag and emptied out all its contents in the middle of the cell. “Take this, good elder,” he said, “I will get what I need elsewhere.”

John Moschus, Leimonarion (The Spiritual Meadow) 9

In lower Egypt there was an anchorite...

…who was well-known because he dwelt in a solitary cell in the desert. Now by the power of Satan, a shameless woman who had heard of him said to some young men, “What would you give me if I could cause your anchorite to fall?” They agreed to give her something of value.

In the evening she went out and came to his cell as though she had lost her way, and when she knocked, the anchorite came out. When he saw her he was troubled and said, “How have you come here?” Weeping, she said, “I came here because I have lost my way.” Filled with compassion, he made her come into the entry, and he returned to his cell and shut it, but the unfortunate creature began to cry out, “Abba, the wild animals will eat me!” He was uneasy again, but fearing the judgment of God, he said, “What is the source of this trouble?” and he opened the door and made her come inside. Then the devil attempted to attack him with his arrows.

Pondering the warfare of the enemy, he said, “The ways of the enemy are darkness, whereas the Son of God is light,” and he rose and lit the lamp. Burning with desire, he said to himself, “Those who commit such acts go the punishment; try then, and see if you can bear the everlasting fire,” and he put his finger into the lamp and burnt it without feeling it, so extreme was the sensual flame. He went on doing this until morning, burning all his fingers. The unfortunate woman, seeing what he was doing, was petrified with fear.

In the morning the young men came to see the anchorite and said to him, “Did a woman come here last night?” He said, “Yes, she is inside, asleep.” They entered and found her dead, and they said to him, “Abba, she is dead.” Then, uncovering his hands, he showed them to the young men, saying, “Look what the daughter of the devil has done to me: she has destroyed my fingers,” and he told them what had happened and said, “It is written, `Do not render evil for evil’”, and he prayed and awoke her, and she went away and lived wisely the rest of her life.

One day a man asked an alms...

…of the Saint (John the Almsgiver, patriarch of Alexandria, 610-619) who directed that ten coppers [pholleis] and no more should be given to him. The beggar then violently abused the Patriarch to his face for not having given him as much as he wanted. But when his attendants were anxious to thrash him for his insolence, the Patriarch rebuked them severely, saying: “Leave him alone, brothers. Here have I been insulting Christ for sixty years by my deeds, and can I not bear one insult from this fellow?” And he commanded his almoner to open the money-bag and let the beggar take as large a sum as he wished.

Leontius, Life of John the Almsgiver, 37

It was said of a brother...

…that having made some baskets, he was putting on the handles when he heard his neighbor saying, “What can I do? Market day is near and I have no handles to put on my baskets.” Then he took the handles off his own baskets and brought them to the brother, saying, “Here are these handles which I have left over; take them and put them on your baskets.” So he caused his brother’s work to succeed by neglecting his own.