Ole Anderson and the "Loaf of Bread"

Among the signs of the true church and evidence of God’s work in the world, are the manifestations of His power. Usually we are helpless to explain or even fully understand His powers. In the scriptures these divine acts and special blessings are referred to as “miracles”, “signs”, “wonders,” or “marvels”.  I believe the desire for a God and His angels to intervene in our personal lives is human nature.  There are just some things we can not do alone! I came across another “miracle” in our family history. I’ve heard this story numerous times throughout my life from different family members. The following is the best documented version I’m aware of. Aunt Mary copied the story on 19 November 1996 from Raymond and Verletta Anderson’s genealogy. The miracle occurred in the life of Ole Anderson while he was on his first mission to Denmark in 1895. Ole Anderson was the father of AR Anderson. The story is being told by Owen Anderson (AR Anderson’s brother). Father, Ole Anderson, was very desirous of going back to Denmark after he came to Utah. He had a strong desire to bring the gospel to his and mother’s families that were left there, as well as others of his friends. In those days missionaries traveled without “purse or script” which meant that they took very little money with them and depended on the people of the world for heir full support. This incident was told to me by my sister Annie Van Cott, and which was also published in the Danish paper in Salt Lake called the “Biekuben” after father’s return from his mission. “Late one dark and stormy night father and his companion were walking along a country road in

Denmark. They did not have much success that day and had not been given a meal since the day before, and they were hungry and wet. As they walked along they met a man coming toward them with a small bundle under his arm. When he approached them he gave the bundle and said: ‘This is for you.’ They took the bundle and before they knew it he had disappeared in the dark. The bundle was a loaf of warm bread wrapped in an embroidered dish towel. The two missionaries thankfully ate the bread and father folded the dish towel and put it in with his belongings in his steamer trunk when they returned to their place of living. He thought no more about the dish towel.  When father came home from his mission and mother unpacked his steamer trunk she came across the embroidered dish towel. She asked father where he got it and he told her the story of the man and the loaf of bread. She was very much surprised and told him: ‘Father, I remember baking some bread one day and I wrapped a loaf of bread in this dish towel and placed it on the window sill of the open window to cool for our supper. When I went to get the loaf of bread, it was gone. I thought the Indians had taken it off the window sill, dish towel and all, and thought to myself; Let them have it. They are more hungry than we are. That was almost a year ago.’ Father told mother that when the man gave them the bread it was still warm.” Moroni wrote to the people of our dispensation, “Behold, I will show unto you a God of miracles, … and it is that same God who created the heavens and the earth, and all things that in them are” (Morm. 9:11). Moroni proclaimed that Jesus Christ did many mighty miracles, that many mighty miracles were wrought by the hands of the Apostles, and that a God who is the same yesterday, today, and forever must be a God of miracles today! (see Morm.9:18; Morm. 9:9) With Moroni of old, I believe in a God of miracles. Just as important as the “mighty miracles” performed by Christ are the smaller “private miracles” like Minnie and Ole’s “warm loaf of bread”- each teaches us to have faith in a power greater than ourselves.