“A flood once washed away a poor man’s home and mill, taking with it everything he owned in the world. He stood at the scene of his great loss, brokenhearted and discouraged. Yet after the waters had subsided, he saw something shining in the riverbanks that the flood had washed bare. ‘It looks like gold,’ he said. And it was gold. The storm that had impoverished him made him rich. So it is oftentimes in life.” Henry Clay Trumbull

It wasn’t until my job was gone, my friends were gone, and I could no longer go out that I found gifts and abilities that I did not know existed.

Example: I never saw myself as an artist. I painted the figurines on the church’s nativity set because it was too expensive to replace. Then I restored Aunt Nellie’s figurines and 3 – 2′ cement penguins.

My confidence grew and last Christmas I painted two scenes as gifts for friends. I never would have developed this gift if my former life had not been taken away.

Luke 18:14, “…if you’re content to simply be yourself, you will become more than yourself.” The Message

Are you in a season of loss? Ask God to show you what to do during this time.

The first year I…

1. Made a quilt top from my son’s tee shirts and embroidered the autographs on it.
2. Cut out tee shirts for my daughter’s quilt.
3. Wrote the “Relevant” Bible Reading Guide.
4. De-cluttered every room, closet, and cupboard.
5. Caulked all doors, windows, and baseboard.
6. Made drapes out of painter’s floor cloth.
7. Made lace sheers to fit inside window frames.
8. Made privacy curtain between washer/dryer and bathroom.
9. Used Velcro to attach outside edges of drapes to walls.
10. Donated silk floral collection and vases to high school for a play.
11. Donated hat boxes, tins, and baskets to “Band Aids” for a fundraiser dinner.
12. Hosted Thanksgiving and 2 Christmas dinners.
13. Shortened pants for my nephew.
14. Made gifts for three new babies.
15. Restored Grandma’s wool quilt.
16. Painted details on the frames of pictures and gave as gifts.
17. Painted kitchen swag light to match new kitchen light fixture.
18. Reconfigured shelves in the kitchen cabinets.
19. Made a shadowbox of David’s high school mementos.
20. Cut the budget and stretched the food to live on 63% of our former income.

That should give you a few ideas!

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