Just when my son was looking for a three-piece suite, Carole, a very dear friend of ours, ‘happened’ to be buying a new one. Chris was absolutely thrilled when he was asked if he would like it, especially as despite it being more than 20 years old, it still looked lovely and was most comfortable to sit on. Yet there was something even more precious about this three-piece suite; something heavenly. For even when it had been moved to my sons’ home, it always held within its wings a wonderful sense of our Lord’s peace. This, I felt sure, was due to the many years that it had been bathed in prayer, by the house group that regularly met in Carole’s home.

We were very excited to later hear that Chris was moving to a new house, but I felt so sad that the suite had been found to be too big to fit in. I couldn’t bear to think of it going to the tip, and so instead, with just two days to spare before the move, I posted it on ‘Freecycle’. I prayed that Jesus would give it to someone in need of His peace.

Very late that night, I received a phone call from a lady who was very apologetic for the hour. She told me that her young unmarried daughter had recently had a baby, and had just been given a flat by the Council. They had nothing at all to go inside, and were very short of money and quite desperate. I told her that the suite must be meant for them, and found myself saying that it was a very special one. I very gently said that it had been bathed in prayer for many years and carried God’s peace. The lady began to cry on the other end of the phone, and told me that they had been through such a hard year, and really needed that. She had nursed both her mother, and mother-in-law, and both had died that year too. So, the next day, my husband, Bob, delivered the suite to the empty flat for them.

But that night, we received yet another phone call from the lady, who couldn’t wait to tell us what had happened after Bob had left. You see, when they had seen the suite on Freecycle, they had also noticed a cooker. They phoned, were told they could have it, and so drove over to pick it up. Whilst there, the owner asked if they would also like some curtains, which turned out to be the EXACT fabric of the three piece suite – more than 20 years old! In that moment, this precious lady who had been struggling so much, knew that she was not alone.

Yes, God definitely uses Freecycle!