Nursing Home Ministry

God’s Christmas Gift of Light

/ pastorpete51 / 3 Comments 
In Him was life and the life was the light of men. John 1:4 KJV

If we were to guess the meaning of Christmas from what we see on television or by way of internet marketing, we might guess that it is primarily about buying things for people. We see images of smiling people slipping on diamond rings, jumping into shiny new cars or cuddling up by the fire in luxurious clothing. But the Bible makes it clear, that while God knows there are things that we dream of receiving, there is nothing that we could purchase, that has eternal value. When God prepared to give His gift to us at Christmas, it was neither in the beauty of an expensive ring, nor the comfort of a fine home, but rather He gave us the light of Heaven. We all have heard how that on the night that Jesus was born, the first people to get the news were shepherds in a dark field, and the Bible says, “The glory of the Lord shone around them.” Luke 2:9. When the wise men showed up some time later, we are told that, they followed the light of a star that, “When it rose, went ahead of them.” Matthew 2:9. Everywhere we turn, God’s gift comes to the world by the light of His Son Jesus Christ. That gift still shines in our darkness, but if we follow Him, God promises to give us the light of life. Once we have received that light, then we will be able to give gifts to others, like forgiveness, encouragement or a listening ear. These never show up in commercials, but they are the ones that are eternal, because they point to Jesus, the light of the world and God’s Christmas gift to us!

Learning to Listen

/ pastorpete51 / 3 Comments 
Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. James 1:19 NLT

I wrote this article a few years ago about listening in nursing home ministry, but it is just as applicable in other kinds of outreach and even within our own families (a good thought to carry as we plan on Thanksgiving gatherings!)

When my wife and I were learning Portuguese, from our friends at the Brazilian church where we served on staff, we had to learn be quiet and pay attention as people spoke. One fun way we found was to join in during worship time. As others were singing around us, we tried our best, a tiny bit at a time to join them with our own voices. Then, little by little, as we increased our vocabulary and improved our dreadful accents, we were able to enter into conversations with our friends.

I have discovered that same kind of listening is important in nursing home ministry. It does little good and sometimes much harm, to simply come in with all of my own ideas of what I think people need to hear. Life in long-term care, whether it is assisted living, memory care or a traditional skilled nursing facility is entirely different from living in the outside world. Just as when we were learning Portuguese, it is hard for most of us to be quiet long enough to hear what people are saying. In spite of the fact that we have two ears and one mouth, most of us find that talking is far easier than listening! But only listening long enough to know the hearts of others, will teach us how to share the message of the love of Jesus Christ in a language that they can understand. So, lets close our mouths tighter and open our ears wider and ask God to help us to listen. And most of all, remember that our God, the Great Creator, the Almighty, the all-knowing Eternal God, stoops low to listen to our prayers!

We Gather Together

/ pastorpete51 / 4 Comments 
 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name! Psalm 100:4 KJV

Thanksgiving is one of the few days of the year when we in the United States gather with our family members, some of whom we may not have seen since the previous year. In our case we are heading to our son’s place in Texas soon, with another son coming with a grandson down from PA to join in. Our thankfulness may not resemble much the original feast held by the Pilgrims in Massachusetts in 1621, nevertheless we are genuinely grateful to have an opportunity to break from our busy schedules and recall God’s goodness through both our hardships as well as victories. God has been gracious, patient and kind, even when we were not. He has taught us more of forgiveness and continues to work in our hearts as we seek His will. A few weeks ago, during a senior’s luncheon, the pastor asked what everyone’s favorite Thanksgiving hymn was. Many replied, “Great is Thy Faithfulness”, while I like some of the more modern songs on Thankfulness, but my wife surprised us all when she brought up, “We Gather Together.” Now, I actually always loved that older hymn, but had nearly forgotten its words as we probably had not sung it in church in nearly forty years. So, I opened up my old hymn book, and began practicing it, and introduced it into our song selection last week at the Life Care Center, Friday service. I do hope you will enjoy our simple rendition. Here on my third attempt, I actually made it all the way through without missing any of the lyrics! Have a blessed week everyone and think of ways you may gather to give thanks to the Lord. He always welcomes those who come into His gates with Thanksgiving!