As we begin 40 Days of True Religion, I thought I’d share an email we received in the office about a month ago. It is powerful and very encouraging. And it is the perfect start to the next 40 days. It was from Brianne, someone we have not met and probably won’t ever meet. But you can hear her heart and her struggles. And she was touched by Peninsula, our women’s quilting ministry to be exact. Listen to her story.
I have recently felt the need to reach out to your church and say thank you for the blankets you donate to the NICU at Torrance Memorial Hospital. About a year ago my child was a recipient of one of these beautiful blankets and for a while it was the only colorful thing in the room. This was a very scary time as we didn’t know what was wrong, but I found comfort in looking at him lying on his colorful animal blanket that was made with love by a total stranger. Your blanket went through 3 different NICUs and provided a constant when everything was changing. I know it sounds silly that such a simple thing as a blanket can provide so much, but it does and has. I am happy to say that it is now safely packed away for a very interesting story to one day share with my son. He is doing great!
From the bottom of my heart, thank you so much for this blanket and the love that came with it. It brought me peace, comfort, and allowed me to hold on to something when I wasn’t able to physically hold him. Please don’t stop making these blankets.
Thank you.
Well, I probably should have warned you about where this was headed, so you could have had your Kleenex ready. We do not make these quilts anymore (it just needs leadership), but God leads and moves in His way. I share this because making quilts is not very glamorous, and it does not receive any fanfare from the platform. It is an act of love. And an expression of hope. Our ladies cast these blankets into the world and never know what God does with them. That is the nature of true religion, a faith that acts in love and hope. God does the rest.
As we consider True Religion for the next 40 days, here is a great example of what our faith and our hope can do. All we must do is think practically and listen to the leading of God among us. So, ladies: well done (as always). May your tribe increase! And may we all be known by our display of true religion.