Many years ago, almost twenty, God placed me on a parallel
path with a wonderful woman. While our lives intersected she taught me so much,
even now I will do something and realize that the seed, the idea or the method
came from her example. God sent her into my life when I was a harried and
frantic young mother with four children. Four children under the age of seven. We
went to her house often.
I often watched her quiet, calm and determined ways and
attempted to implement them in my life. She was a strong personality—a steel
hand in a cashmere glove. I look at my life now and realize much of what I know
about a servant’s demeanor and a prayer warriors’ heart and an open door of
hospitality was molded by her example and character.
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| Peggy and Howard (her sweet husband) |
All the time I knew her she battled cancer. There were
seasons of remission, and through prayer and faith in our God she held cancer
back. She prayed audaciously during that time. She went boldly before his
throne, not out of arrogance, but because she believed in the faithfulness of
God. She had several reasons to pray persistently. She wanted to see her
children grown, wanted to see them into maturity (They became beautiful people,
both her daughter and son). I know she asked the Lord for time, time to
accomplish these things, and he gave it to her.
Her name was Peggy. A nickname for Margaret. My girls called
her Ms. Peggy. Peggy was a Titus 2
woman in my life. She mentored me without ever calling it such. She instructed me without ever lecturing. She taught me without ever being didactic. She led me by example. She was the seed God used to begin the growth of intercessory prayer in my own life.
One of the most vivid memories I have of Peggy connects to how
she put feet to her faith and prayers. If she said she would pray for you she did, but often those prayers would
be accompanied with a meal. But what I remember most is her Yum Yum Coffee Cake.
Peggy baked these breakfast treats in large batches and kept
them frozen—ready to pull out and take to someone in need. She baked them in
round, disposable aluminum pans (so no one needed to worry about returning
them). She covered them with cellophane and then wrapped them in foil for
protection. She delivered them with a handwritten card, a real smile and gentle pat. I remember
her hands, her handwriting (I still have her cards), and the sound of her
voice.
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| Peggy with her daughter Elizabeth on her wedding day. God answers prayers! |
At Christmas this year I found Peggy’s coffee cake recipe and
made it for the first time in many, many years. I made it mostly for my husband
who loves sweets with coffee on lazy Saturday mornings. As I made the recipe I
thought about Peggy. While that coffee cake baked and the scent wafted through
the kitchen he reminded me of lessons learned in her kitchen long ago.
Peggy taught me to do more than just tell someone you would
pray for them. She taught me to pray immediately. If not you would might get
sidetracked and forget she explained. Peggy also taught me to give. Give time
and effort and thought—whether it be a meal, a gift or a coffee cake.
Peggy taught me that putting feet on your faith is not nearly as complicated as we often make it. Sometimes it’s just as simple as making a breakfast cake and delivering it for no reason other than to make someone’s day.
I bless and thank God for Peggy’s enduring example and her
lasting legacy.
Here’s Peggy’s recipe. Enjoy it with your own family on a
lazy Saturday morning. Make an extra one and deliver it with prayer to someone
else.
That's what Peggy would want you to do.
Peggy’s Yum Yum Coffee Cake—in memory of her own mother
Genevieve von Allmen.
(Use 1 stick of butter to replace oleo.)
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| Peggy's recipe--found in the Big Hill Avenue Christian Church Cookbook. |
