All Souls

My church celebrated All Souls tonight at the regular Wednesday evening service. It meant a great deal to hear my dear friend Ruth Farrell's name read in church. She loved God so much, and now she knows God loves her.

But the person I thought of most was Martha Johnson, who worked for my grandmother for many years. My parents and my maternal grandparents were atheists; Martha was the Christian whose faith I saw most as a child. She belonged to the African Methodist Episcopal Church and her Bible and a devotional magazine were always on the kitchen table to read when she had a spare moment. I believe she prayed for me and that her prayers helped save me. I am grateful to her and to God for her role in my life.