Stories of Ministry

Look at What God is Doing!

An Interview with Jenny Giles, member of the "Knit One, Pray Two" Outreach Ministry November 2006:

How long have you been a part of this ministry? How did you first get involved?

A church member met with some of us and suggested that we start the ministry, after her mother knit a shawl for her when she was going through a hard time. A group of us were looking for ways to pray together, and I had been thinking about how to contribute something to the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center. I know how lonely those waiting rooms and hospital rooms can feel. This sounded like a wonderful opportunity.

From your experience, how does this ministry impact people? What are the programs' greatest strengths?

The shawl has been a constant reminder that God is with me. When I was hospitalized for anaphylactic shock, Mark brought the shawl to me. When my grandmother was ill and dying, I kept the shawl with me in those quiet times of waiting and wordless prayer. The shawl reminds me that I have someone praying for me, and is a tangible reminder that God is with me. During the hours that I sat with my grandma in her room, I knit or crocheted and prayed. It helped me to focus my thoughts on God and pray during a time that would ordinarily be emotionally difficult to pray. I was able to give those shawls to some others that I met in the nursing home.

In Arkansas last year, I started a knit/crochet group with my church friends there. We gave most of the shawls to hospice and to nursing homes.

The thank you cards that we received, here and in Arkansas have been emotional and humbling. Some have spoken of loved ones passing and how the shawl remained with those left behind. Others speak of how the shawl got them through difficult times. All of them echo my own response. It is a reminder that someone has been praying and a tangible physical reminder that God is there.

The program requires minimal commitment. We only meet once a month. It is a time to get to know each other better, a time to pray together for others, a time to learn something new, and something that you can take home with you to continue.

Has your involvement with this ministry affected your faith at all? Has it influenced how you relate to God, the church, or others? If it has how?

The opportunity to work together to share the compassion of Jesus reminds me that we are the fabric of His kingdom. God intertwines our lives for a purpose.