Page 12 - Glory & Grace Issue 4: "Small Wonders" Nov 2021

PAGE 12
"THERE'S SOME HEAVEN ON EARTH, TOO"
When her husband died in 2013 and Jackie Brown found herself in a time of need, she remembers that others came to her aid with food and support. One day, after an IF:Table small group meeting, Jackie was catching up with another member of the small group, Anita Simonsen. Jackie remembers that Anita said, "Thursdays are hard," in reference to her weekly chemotherapy rhythm; a necessary treatment for Anita's 3rd recurrence of cancer. Though Jackie hadn't cooked for years, she said to Anita, "I'm not a good cook and I'm out of the habit, but, why don't I bring some stuff for dinner on Thursdays?"
"It makes my heart feel warm," Jackie says about her weekly meal delivery. Laughing, she shares, "I know it's divine intervention because I don't cook for anyone!" When she's discouraged by the state of the world or how people treat one another, Jackie says that she is "so thankful I can do it [bring a meal on Thursdays] because it makes me remember that there's a connection still...that people can still care and be grateful...It just goes to show that there's some heaven on earth, too."
Carolyn Holmlund helps to drop off KOG's first donation of snacks and drinks to Billings Clinic as part of the Adopt-A-Unit People Supporting People project.
GOD'S STEADFAST LOVE ENDURES
Carolyn Holmlund is 85 years old, no longer drives herself, and has experienced significant grief in recent years. You might think that she is content to let life pass her by, but you would be wrong.
Carolyn admits that getting older has its challenges, but she finds meaning in her days through reading large print books, connecting for meals with friends, and writing letters. "On Mondays," she says, "I always write at least two letters." The value of receiving a letter of encouragement was instilled in her when she began writing to a nephew who was incarcerated. "For eight years I wrote three letters each week to him...I used postcards, so the guards didn't have to open an envelope." Carolyn remembers that when she would visit her nephew in prison, the guards would say, "oh you're the letter writer!" Years later, Carolyn took up writing each week to a KOG college student. For this student's entire college experience, Carolyn sent words of encouragement and love. During the pandemic shutdown, Carolyn and some KOG friends sent letters back and forth as a way to uplift one another and bear their burdens together.
In the age of Twitter, you might think letter writing has lost its impact, but it has not! Whether by letter writing, email, or even a post-it-note, God works through us to accompany one another along the way.
Jackie Brown KINGOFGLORYBILLINGS.COM
"Do not neglect the gift that is
in you" 1 Timothy 4:14