Hello, and welcome to the very first episode of Next Door Gospel. I'm your host, Peggy Griffith. I would like to start by saying how delighted I am that you are here. Next Door Gospel is a podcast where we will hear stories and discuss the ways that God shows up in the world, oftentimes in the Unexpected places. I'll be honest, as I speak to more and more people and listen to their stories, my mind is just blown and I can't wait to share these stories with you. In this first episode, I will tell you a little bit about what called me here to enter into this space with you and how this idea of next door gospel has come together. So a little bit about the human behind the voice you're hearing. I am a 49 year old. work in progress. I live a beautiful and chaotic, imperfect life with my husband, John. We have three fur children of the feline variety. I work full time as a project manager at a healthcare IT company. So I am a bit of a control freak and nothing gives me more joy than a well ordered spreadsheet. I'm a connoisseur of great pizza and wine. I love to talk to people, to learn new things, and just laugh as much as humanly possible. My journey of faith has taken a lot of twists and turns throughout my life. And admittedly, that is due to my own stubbornness and drive to control things. I convinced myself that I alone have the power to make or break key moments in my life. My relationship with God has been one of fascination and deep curiosity, but also something tucked away in a box, placed neatly on a shelf. An unexplainable longing has grown deeper in me to build that relationship and it's always been there, but cast aside purely out of fear of letting go of a career and life path that I've been on that always felt safe and familiar. I'm not sure if I could ever allow the two paths to exist in harmony with one another. So over the past five to six years, I found myself on a journey of discernment. I've taken small steps to open the box, peek inside, little by little, and now this unexplainable longing can no longer be ignored. Each time I open that box, I become just a little bit more tuned in to how God has worked within me. My skills, experiences, and spiritual gifts that make me the weirdo, over enthusiastic, overthinking, outspoken, driven person that I am. But I'm also finding that there is a sacred intersection with who I am. And what I have to give to this world around me that is hurting. I went on to complete a three year education program to become equipped as a lay minister. All that to mean that I currently serve in a non ordained capacity. I am a member of a wonderful community of faith at the First Congregational Church of Wauwatosa, Wisconsin. I dare you to say that three times fast. Wauwatosa. But I get the opportunity there to serve in various leadership capacities, and I fill the pulpit for area ministers when they need a respite. I also currently serve as moderator, leading a fellowship of about 20 congregational churches throughout the state of Wisconsin. So I come to you today with a mix of nervous apprehension and excitement as all our paths collide into this space called Next Door Gospel. What does that even mean? And it's okay to ask, I've been pondering it too. For folks who might have grown up in a Judeo Christian tradition, the question, what does the word gospel mean, is often answered quickly and automatically without a lot of thought. So if you are, come on ahead and say it with me. It means good news. Woo. I love good news. Wait. Good news about what? From my perspective, I like to think about it this way. Have you ever had a moment or an experience where you're like, whoa, I'm not sure what just happened there, but the universe just aligned and something really awesome just happened. You might even call it divine intervention. If you are even a little familiar with scripture, and it is okay if you're not, but if you are, you probably know that there are four books in the Bible that start what is called the New Testament. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. These four books make up what are called the Gospels. And they tell a story about the best known record of divine intervention in the history of the world. It is a thrilling, challenging, and even emotional adventure that weaves interconnected stories that announce God's movement in the world through the arrival, the ministry, the death and resurrection of a promised Savior, Jesus Christ. Now, if you're listening to this podcast today and you are a bit curious about spirituality, not sure what it means to you and the space around you, maybe you're questioning your faith. Maybe you've been hurt and given up hope that God will ever show up for you. And if that is you, please keep listening. A good friend of mine, his name is Gary from Scottsdale, Arizona. He said something to me over the holidays, and it hit me like a ton of bricks. He said, Peg, I'd like to think that someday when we're on the other side of this life, standing there with God, all of the events of our lives, the twists and turns and the people we meet, it will all become very clear where God was in the midst of all of it. Like, Hey, wait a minute. God, that time in 1987, that was you? Sometimes these moments only make sense when we look back, and they're so hard to see in their midst. But it is through these stories, my story, your story, your neighbor's story, that we get the chance to experience the gospel happening everywhere in our time. So next door gospel is an invitation to share in real stories of real people who have experienced God showing up for them in a very real way. What some might call coincidence, others see is divine timing and providence. So my prayer is that you will listen to these stories and be touched by God's presence within them. You might even be surprised to discover how God is already moving in your life. These sacred intersections have a purpose. But if you take nothing else away from our time together today, the good news is this. God is for you. Yes, you. It doesn't matter who you are, where you live, what you've done, who you love. The good news is God is not confined to church buildings or otherwise religious spaces. God is not just for people with abundant bank accounts, descendants of certain races or ethnicities, bloodlines, or people of a certain gender or sexual orientation. The Bible is chock full of stories and circumstances where God showed up and particularly in unexpected places. and to unexpected people. And here's the thing, God didn't stop showing up 2, 000 years ago. The gospel is happening right now. It is happening in our living rooms, our workplaces, grocery stores, hospitals, prisons, street corners. everywhere. And if God can show up for your neighbor, God will show up for you. And just as the gospel stories of the Bible have been told for generations and generations, you might be inspired to share your own gospel story. And that inspires someone else to share their gospel story. You see where I'm going with this? I would love to collaborate with you in sharing your own gospel story. And if you or someone you know would like to share your story, send me an email at nextdoorgospel at gmail. com. And I'll repeat this at the end of the episode. But I'm going to kick off this episode by sharing a very recent story of how God showed up in an unexpected way, not just in my life, but the ripple effect that is still moving today in the space. around me. And as is usually the case with experiences like this, it is the hindsight that reveals not just the divine providence of God at work, but also the incredible gift of a community that cared and prayed with my family through a nightmare. Last year in May, my husband, John, became ill and I needed to take him to the emergency room. So logically, I had planned to take him to the hospital that was closest to our home. But for some reason, John expressed that he would rather drive a little bit out of our way to a larger hospital, one that's also a certified trauma one facility in the Milwaukee area. Now, I didn't know it at the time, but this intuitive decision to take a different path To a different hospital was the first pivotal intersection with Providence. You see, later that day, we would learn that on that exact morning, the other hospital had been hit with a crippling cyber attack that took down all their computer systems, networks and communications. I. Cannot even begin to fathom how the story would have ended up had we not changed course that day. After a few hours in the ER, we had a diagnosis and by all appearances, this was going to be a rather inconvenient episode, requiring a few days in the hospital, and then we would return to normal rather quickly. But over the next day and a half, his condition worsened and he had become critical. He was in severe respiratory distress. His organs were shutting down and he was septic. He was rushed into the ICU and I got to see him for only a moment before a team of doctors and nurses kicked us out and said, your husband is critical. The words if he survives. entered our realm of possibility. And I just remember feeling like I was floating and certainly out of control. A few hours later, I got to see him and he had been sedated, chemically paralyzed and intubated on a respirator. Our pastor, Reverend Julie, who will definitely be a contributor on this show, and you will love her. I can't wait for you to meet her. But she showed up shortly after this and prayed with me as tears just gushed from my face onto John's hands. And this would become a regular habit over the course of John's prolonged stay in the ICU that lasted over four weeks. The next day was Sunday and Reverend Julie shared the news of John's condition with our church family. And I'll tell you, it is hard to describe. I've heard other people describe it in similar circumstances, but we all felt a collective hug and it surrounded John, our family, and all who were managing his care. And it's humbling to know that you have a community gathered in prayer for you. I mentioned that the hospital we were at is a certified level one trauma facility, and they get the worst of the worst cases car accidents, shooting trauma. I was confronted very quickly with a medical team that was very calm. And in fact I think it was almost too calm for my liking. I had expected a scene out of Grey's Anatomy where doctors all descend on the patient and miracles happen and he's cured. But instead, what I got was a chief surgeon that told me very matter of factly. And in a calm voice, he said, a prolonged course in the ICU is never linear. You don't just improve day by day. You will have days where the forward momentum is optimistic. And there will be days that feel like a step backwards. And we hope that the overall trend is forward. A nurse practitioner followed that and said all we can do right now is support his body and keep his organs functioning as best as we can and see how things progress. John went on to contract ventilator acquired pneumonia that was resistant to almost all antibiotics available. And folks, if you are unaware of the antibiotic crisis in this world, let me tell you, it is not fun when infectious disease doctors are making a decision as to whether his case was worth giving him the last ditch effort, big guns, antibiotics to give him a chance at survival. The concern being that these superbugs are smart, and if they are exposed to and build resistance to these antibiotics, there will be nothing left. to fight them off for the next person. So facing these truths of what his medical team was telling me, it was excruciatingly difficult to accept. These doctors, although so very awesome, experienced, talented, and I firmly believe guided by God's mighty hand, they were not magicians. And if I was looking to place all my faith and trust in John's healing journey solely on their physical capabilities and actions, Then I was missing the very connection that Jesus made throughout his ministry, and that is the flesh is useless without the Spirit. Now, I wish I could tell you that I had that epiphany, but to be honest, in the moment when I was in the middle of the desert, watching breathing monitors, IV bags being used and replaced, hearing beeps and alarms, and praying for answers that simply would not come, I truly didn't think too much about the Spirit. But something spiritual did happen. And I want to share that with you today, a week or so into our nightmare. I got a text message from a dear friend and church member. Her name is Marcella. She wrote something to me, like, we have been thinking about you and John, and we're praying for you and we want to do something to help. And I'm wondering if I can sourdough bread for you, never being one to turn down a bonafide carbohydrate in my life. Of course I obliged and she said she would make it with extra love. She delivered it to me at the hospital right after worship that Sunday. And she had carved a beautiful heart into the dough so that the finished product was just this beautiful work of art. I took it, I sliced it down the middle, and I shared it with my brother and sister in law because they never left our side during this journey, and I kept the other half for myself. Now, up to this point, my new normal routine had become waking up early and driving to the hospital to get there slightly before 8 a. m. visiting hours so that I could be there for the morning rounds with doctors and hear what they had to say and what the plans were for the day. So breakfast was either skipped or I picked up something in the cafeteria to go with my coffee. But through this gift of bread, that routine started to change. Because every morning, I would cut off a thin slice of Marcella's bread. I'd wrap it in a paper towel and take it with me in the car. And as I drove, I would take small bites and I just savored the love that Marcella poured into it. And I would listen to my favorite K Love songs. And the words that came to my mind were literally spread is so good. It is so life giving. This is the bread of life and the sense of calm that would enter. That confined space as if Jesus were sitting right there in the passenger seat saying, talk to me. Honestly, I may not have been particularly articulate or even respectful, but did make a connection. And I would say, God, I'm not sure how you are going to use this experience for my good or John's good, because right now, all I see is yuck. Help me see the good in this. And it always seemed as if by clockwork, the perfect song at the exact moment would play, encouraging me to keep praying, singing, and even rejoicing through this fire. That 25 to 30 minutes each day were becoming a refuge and set the tone for each day to one of hope. Instead of dread. I'm not sure I would have been able to make that connection had it not been for that act of kindness. It set into motion a course of events that have been described by John's care team as remarkable and even miraculous. We were finally able to transition john from the breathing tube to a trach. And in spite of a couple more setbacks he began to awaken, find his voice and breathe on his own. His team had prepared us. That this road to recovery would be several months based on all that his body had endured. He was released earlier than expected from the long term acute recovery hospital and only required 10 days in a rehab hospital to become self sufficient. His entire medical team has been in awe of his recovery and that is no accident. Our gratitude for our extended community is beyond measure. They stepped up to remind us of God's enduring and life sustaining love. They prayed. They sent cards. They shared their own stories of hope and light. When I wandered toward darkness, they fed us. literally and spiritually. And because of that, it made room to hope and hope enabled me to see what God was doing for all our good. God showed me nurse Nikki with whom our family formed a bond. She was honest, compassionate, and she enthusiastically volunteered to work John's case every day she was on duty. She stopped whatever she was doing and prayed with us whenever Reverend Julie or the hospital chaplain named Rabbi Mellick, who was also Just a wonderful soul whenever they stop by for a visit. Also, part of our morning routine after checking in at the hospital, we would get our badges and then we went to a place called the Family Center. And there a receptionist would call up to the ICU to make sure it was okay for family members to go up. And God showed me a welcoming face. And she would see me each day. She'd smile and wave. She'd pick up the phone without even asking who I was coming to see. I have the wife here for room seven. She would be on the phone calling up before I would even approach her desk. She would always be so kind and ask me how he was doing while she waited on hold. And I don't think it's a coincidence that her name was Angie because I swear I saw angel wings on her. God showed me a community of patience. Each recovering from their own critical illnesses, smiling and offering a thumbs up to one another when they would see each other shuffling slowly down the hall with their walkers and stability belts, commending one another for making it farther or a few extra steps that day. God showed me an organization called Pets Helping People, as they brought some of their therapy dogs to John's Rehab Hospital. And when I learned that they actually operated their training program at a skilled nursing and rehabilitation home that was founded as a ministry by our own church. Find me again of the connections that we make that ripple into the places we would not otherwise have expected. Now I could go on and on and on because the evidence of God's glory showed up in so many ways on this journey, and the story could end right there and be. An amazing gospel story, but there's more. So back in the summer, after John had returned home to continuous recovery on an outpatient basis, I had been scheduled to preach one Sunday when I checked the lectionary for the gospel reading for that day. Once again, I was just struck by Providence. The reading was from John chapter six, when Jesus had been teaching in his synagogue in Capernaum, and he had just declared, I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry. And whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. Now, many of his disciples had begun to grumble about this because that teaching was difficult and it went against everything they had ever been taught. And Jesus knew this. He called them out on it. And he said, does this offend you? So what if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? And I pause because this is a fascinating foreshadowing of the things to come. But Jesus is like, what's it going to take to get y'all to believe who I am? And then here it is. Jesus said, it is the Spirit that gives life. The flesh is useless. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and life. And upon reading those words, I knew I just had to give the very same testimony that I just shared with you on that Sunday. So beforehand, I called Marcella and I asked her permission to share the story of her incredible gift of bread during those difficult days. It is never good to call somebody out in a sermon when they aren't expecting it. Not only did she agree to it, but she baked a loaf. to share with the congregation during the coffee hour that would take place after worship. And friends, I was the last person to show up in the Friendship Lounge that day, and the loaf was all but consumed. Only crumbs remained. I met a jubilant crowd, all exclaiming, that bread was so good! You really could taste the love. All those folks were smiling and satisfied, having just shared a small sliver of this one loaf of sourdough bread. And I can't even begin to tell you the goosebumps of that moment. Weeks later, I would learn that story didn't even end there, if you can believe that. Another friend and church member later told me that on that day, she and her husband had watched the live stream to worship from home because he had been immune compromised due to cancer treatments. And so they were homebound during his medical journey. So they related very closely. to the story of John's medical journey and his story. An hour or so later, her doorbell unexpectedly rang. It was a neighbor whom she had known not very well. Her neighbor said, I just baked an extra loaf of sourdough bread and I was wondering if you would like a loaf. Did the little hairs on your arms just stand on end? Mine did. And my friend called it a God Whisper. And whatever you call it, it's what I call Next Door Gospel. It's God showing up in times and places where we least expect it. And it is all of us keeping our eyes and our ears and our hearts open enough to recognize it, and share the story with someone else who needs to hear it. Your story is part of the greatest story ever told. And if you would like to collaborate and share your experience of how God showed up in your life, I would love to hear from you. I would also love feedback on this podcast. Send me an email at nextdoorgospel at gmail. com. I'm hoping to release episodes on a weekly basis, but please bear with me as I get things started. Please subscribe to this podcast wherever you listen to podcasts and share it with a friend. Tune in to my next episode, which will be part one of a two part story about one family's life of mission work that led them to Ukraine and their daring journey of evacuation after Russia invaded the country. In 2022 until then, may the Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you. The Lord turn his face towards you and give you peace. Amen.