In Episode 053, Angie Clayton describes her ministry of presence

Today I am interviewing a woman who has made it her mission to come along people who are grieving any type of loss. It could be a death, loss of a job, major illness or even regret that their lives didn’t turn out differently.

Angie Clayton is from Kansas City, Kansas. For years, she worked in women’s ministry for a big church where many lives were changed.

But, after turning 50, Angie’s life went in a completely different direction when she was sidelined by some debilitating illnesses before she was finally diagnosed with a rare autoimmunity disease.

Yet, her biggest contribution has been in starting what she calls a ministry of presence to walk with people who are experiencing grief. She was called into it suddenly when a woman she was acquainted with lost a child.

Angie felt called to help, in some way, so she got in her car and drove to the woman’s house where she went into firefighter mode to keep the household running and care for eight children.

Over the years, Angie has fine-tuned her grief ministry in a way that encourages others to be supportive in those difficult times. In fact, she wrote a book about ways people have been helped through periods of grief.

For many years, people were afraid to talk to people who were grieving because they didn’t know what to say, so they avoided conversation altogether. That only kept grieving people in isolation at the time they needed support the most.

After someone loses a friend or loved one, others are apprehensive about even mentioning that person’s name for fear of opening a wound. Yet, Angie discovered people want to talk about the person who just died because it keeps their memory alive.

I also appreciated Angie pointing out why it is so valuable to people grieving a death for others to share memories about that person. Grieving people won’t be able to make new memories themselves, so they love it when others share their memories.

Angie’s book, “Peering into the Tunnel: An Outsiders Look into Grief,” is a valuable tool because it helps readers to know what to say and what not to say when ministering to someone who is grieving.

The most important message Angie shared was even if you’re afraid of doing something wrong, still offer to help anyway. Rely on God to help you to know what to say and how to serve in the most meaningful ways.

Because regret is often something people grieve, Angie said being over 50 is the ideal time to start over on a different path. It’s an opportunity to form relationships, start ministries, write books, create paintings and learn new things.

People can connect with Angie at www.angieclayton.net where they can sign up to receive her free newsletter. They can also email her directly at angie@angieclayton.net or follow Angie’s author page on Facebook.

Her book is available on Amazon and in other bookstores.

That’s all I have for this week’s show. If you’d like help in identifying a purpose for your life or to get help planning your next steps, I’m offering a complimentary brainstorming session to members of the Forward From 50 Facebook community. For details, connect with me on Facebook or visit www.forwardfrom50.com.

I’ll have another inspirational interview on the next episode of the Forward From 50 podcast. Thanks for listening. If you like this show, please consider leaving a review wherever you download the episodes.

If you order Angie’s book from a link on this page, Forward From 50 may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.