Austin family finds comfort at Westminster

Austin resident Jane Arhart was born and raised Catholic. But it wasn’t until she joined Westminster Presbyterian and endured the death of three loved ones that she really felt a connection to God.

“Being a part of this church has brought that relationship up close and personal,” she said.

Over the past few months, Arhart, who works as assistant food nutrition director for Austin Public Schools, faced a trio of tragic events in quick succession. Supported by other churchgoers at Westminster and a strengthened connection to God, Arhart overcame her struggles.

She and her husband, Randy, along with their three children, joined the church nearly four years ago. Their youngest daughter, Ashley, watched her friend’s confirmation ceremony and decided she wanted to get confirmed there, too. Others in the family joined the church one by one.

Arhart’s trials started when one of her best friends died in mid-December. Then, before the month was out, her mother-in-law passed away. Only six weeks later, her sister-in-law died. The final death was especially hard on Arhart. Her parents had died when she was still young, and at the age of 12 she went to live with her sister-in-law. The woman had essentially served as her mother for the last 40 years.

“I was sad and confused,” she said. “And obviously I learned through Christ that things happen in his time and not in ours.”

Arhart sought support from the church. Much of it came from The Rev. Michael Olmsted, an associate pastor at Westminster for the last nine years.

According to Arhart, Olmsted was a blessing.

“He talked me through things and tried to find out where I was with things,” she said.

Olmsted said the church is always viewed as a sort of safe haven. People seek refuge and the support they need to get by.

“People are open to receiving the help,” he said. “As long as it’s a safe place where they can come and won’t be judged or looked down upon.”

Other people in church were a sounding board, Arhart said. She could feel prayers coming her way from them, and they offered kind words.

“It brings peace over you if you let it happen,” she said. “Being a part of that church family is a gift.”

The only help more important to Arhart than that of fellow church members was support she received from God.

“Having that relationship to God is what sees you through,” Arhart said. “People in your life help you through good times and bad, but it’s not the same as having Christ in your life.

“If I didn’t have him by my side, I wouldn’t be here today.”

 Feeling God’s power

Arhart said her connection to God began to strengthen a year ago, when she went to Jamaica as a chaperone for a mission trip. One of her main projects was helping out on a new construction site.

“[It] was going to be a rehabilitation center,” she said. “In Jamaica there are many problems with drug and alcohol abuse, and with men who don’t stay with their families once they become fathers.”

The people Arhart worked with were all there for the same purpose of doing God’s work, she said. She had always been a faith-filled person, but this experience brought her to a new level, she said.

“For the first time in my life I felt God’s presence and knew his power,” she said.

Before that point, Arhart still identified as a Christian and would go to church. Growing up, she was taught what it meant to be a good Christian, but she doubts she had a real relationship with God like she does now.

Her husband, who works for Hormel Foods Corp., saw how much she had experienced and been through when she returned from Jamaica last summer. He was inspired to go on a mission trip, too, Arhart said.

Randy and his father went to Joplin, Mo., where the two men helped the recovery effort from tornados that struck the area last year. Their work, which included electrical work and painting, focused on rebuilding the home of a young couple who had lost everything. They returned recently, Arhart said.

 A time to renew commitment

Arhart’s volunteer work and church involvement haven’t dwindled. She was in charge of the Lenten meal for youth at Westminster last month, she said. About 120 people attended.

“You definitely see people returning to the church,” Olmsted said of the Lenten season. College students come back during their spring break, and families return as a whole, he said.

The Easter season is fitting for reconnections like these, Olmsted said. It’s a time to renew commitment to Christ and the sacrifice he has made.

“I see Easter as a wonderful time in which we can focus on what Christ has done for us,” Olmsted said. Christians can realize they are saved and forgiven through him, regardless of what their past may hold, he said.

Arhart has been putting this concept into practice.

“I don’t know how people go through life and don’t have Christ,” she said.