Stepping out of the story, J says to me, \u201cI remember feeling so drawn to Kathy\u2019s words about joy. \u2018Sorrow turned to joy.\u2019 I realized, sitting in that hard chair, that joy comes from the sharing of sorrow. Joy is this incredible experience of sorrow being shared, leading us into a community of love. That\u2019s what I was experiencing, the pure gift of sorrow being shared. I remember thinking to myself, Yeah, it\u2019s true. Youth ministry is for joy because youth ministry is about creating a space for stories and moments of sharing that open us up to something big.\u201d<\/p>\n
We sit in silence for a few seconds, and I think about the ramifications of J\u2019s words. I then ask, \u201cWhat happened next with Kathy\u2019s story? I\u2019m with Tannon\u2014it\u2019s wild that the old woman used that verse.\u201d<\/p>\n
J continues, \u201cKathy then told us the old woman sat with her, holding her hand until Kathy\u2019s husband showed up. Kathy said, \u2018We exchanged numbers. I don\u2019t know why; it seems weird now. But she started to call me, and then we started to meet to pray together. When I got pregnant again, she was the first person I called, because I was both so happy and so scared. We prayed together every week through the whole pregnancy. I just had this sense that God was leading me through. I\u2019ll never forget when Nikki was born, seeing her hold Nikki, crying and praying for her. That\u2019s why she\u2019s Nikki, because in a waiting room like this God sent me Nichole Hunmurray, to pray for me, to see me through and bless us with our Nichole Marie Mattson.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
J tells me that a silence came over everyone. After a minute, Kathy breathed in deep and said, \u201cThat\u2019s why I came today, why I wanted Nikki to be here. In a very weird way, waiting rooms are holy places to me. I\u2019d somehow gotten myself disconnected from that experience, but when I heard Lorena was in the hospital, I knew I needed to be here.\u201d Kathy paused and then said, \u201cI never intended to tell that story until Bernard told his, but I know it\u2019s why I\u2019m here.\u201d<\/p>\n
J says to me, \u201cI thought to myself, I want my youth ministry to be a waiting room like this one. A place where we share stories and are open to something bigger that ushers us into joy.\u201d<\/p>\n