Bible Text: 1 Peter 4:10 | Speaker: Darlene Sala | Series: Encouraging Words | Some people are such an inspiration, aren’t they! Just thinking about them encourages you when the going is tough. Loana is a friend like that. She has always been a joy to know–faithful wife and mother of five—a fantastic pianist. But when her husband died and she had to pick up the pieces of life and go on, I saw a depth in her that I had not known before.

Music has always been a big part of Loana’s life. When her kids were young, the whole family sang together. She is one of the best accompanists I know, a talent she used often to accompany her husband Jim’s rich tenor voice. But when Jim was no longer there, the music that had always been a comfort to her became almost painful. Any time she heard a song that they had performed, memories flooded her heart and the tears flowed.

For years Loana had a long-standing Christmas tradition of inviting friends to their home for a carol sing-along accompanied by great food. But for several Christmases after Jim died, she couldn’t bring herself to do it. The memories were just too painful. Then last Christmas all of us on the staff of Guidelines Ministries received an invitation to come to her home.

When we walked in the door, we saw that the house was fully decorated for Christmas and beautiful china and crystal were on the table. I had thought that we’d be eating a few snacks that evening, but Loana had prepared a delicious full dinner for us. Afterwards, she sat down at the piano and led us in a carol-sing of all our favorites.

The whole evening was special because it was a special gift that Loana gave to each of us—a gift of herself. The apostle Peter said, “Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms” (1 Peter 4:10). Thank you, Loana. You’ve done just that.