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Welcome to Treasure the Quiet Moments
An invitation to ponder God’s presence in the midst of the holiday chaos. My guest today is Mary Aucoin Kaarto. Mary is a single mom with a story. Life looked bleak despite the Christmas decorations….especially when she was laid off.
A Humble, Hopeful Holiday Season
A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you,
that you also love one another. – John 13:34
Once upon a time in October 1992, I was laid off from my secretarial job during one of our country’s numerous downturns in the economy. The moment I was given the news, I was escorted to my desk and observed by a human resources representative as I packed up my personal belongings, before turning in my ID badge and escorted to my car.
It was not a red carpet experience. I was made to feel as though I were a criminal or a lazy sailor, forced to walk the plank and drop off into the unknown with only my nine-year old daughter to hold onto. As a single mother, the fear I felt for the next few weeks can only be described as emotionally claustrophobic; I could barely breathe.
Treasure the Quiet Moments While Laid Off [Click to Tweet]
It wasn’t long before God threw me Himself as a life preserver, and I accepted Jesus as my Lord and Savior. Emilie, my daughter, and I joined a local church, where I was taught so many new things about God that I never knew before. Like … God LOVED me, and that He wanted a personal relationship with me. ME! Imagine my surprise when I learned that I could talk to Him anytime, and that He would listen and answer my prayers. When I made mistakes by committing one sin or another, I could go directly and boldly to the throne of His grace, repent and receive forgiveness.
Time flew by and before I knew it, December arrived and with it, no job offers. My unemployment check was not enough to make ends meet, even though we lived in the cheapest apartment I could find while staying in an area of town in which I needed to feel safe.
Back then there was no such thing as cell phones, and I was terrified to leave the apartment for any reason, afraid I would miss a phone call about a job. As a result, I plunged into a deep depression due in part to the lonely isolation I felt. Thankfully by the grace of God I was able to keep a brave face and relatively jolly attitude around my daughter.
One cold December Saturday afternoon I lit a fire in the fireplace, and together we decorated our Christmas tree while listening to contemporary Christian music on the radio – something I never knew existed before. Had you been able to see inside my heart that day, you would have noticed it was raining tears. Sure, I had never been able to give Emilie lots of gifts or name-brand anything, but I had always been able to give her most of what she asked for.
This year was different, and we both knew it.
Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. I peered through the peep hole to see a woman with three teenagers holding paper bags.
I opened the door and in walked the love of God …[Click to Tweet]
…bringing us a frozen turkey with all the trimmings for me to make my daughter a proper Christmas dinner, as well as two bags of wrapped Christmas gifts that were age-appropriate for her, as well as two items for myself.
I had no idea who this woman or kids were, or where they came from. Maybe, they were angels.
He had a dream, and behold, a ladder was set on the earth with its top reaching to heaven; and behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. – Genesis 28:12
Mary Aucoin Kaarto
Copyright © October 2015
Mary Aucoin Kaarto, author and guest speaker, HELP for the LAID OFF, seeks to bring hope, encouragement and help to the laid off. Sign up today for her free newsletter at http://MaryKaarto.com, and join her on Facebook at http://facebook.com/MaryKaarto.
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A wonderful share and memory, so grateful that God moves into our lives as a life preserver despite our seemingly being thrown overboard to the sharks!
Dawn, thanks for your thoughts. So often what we see as catastrophic, God uses for His good. Losing a job is never a good feeling, but the gift that Mary and Emilie received as a result are priceless.
Very encouraging.