nursing homes

Taking Care of Mom

/ pastorpete51 / 8 Comments 
When Jesus saw His mother and the disciple whom He loved standing nearby, He said to His mother, “Behold your son!” Then He said to the disciple, “Behold your mother!” and from that hour the disciple took her to his own home. John 19:26-27 ESV

When we read the stories of Jesus calling His disciples, it becomes clear early on that He had a special job for three of them: Peter, James, and John. Though Peter’s brother Andrew followed Jesus first and was the one who told Peter about Him, it was Peter who was called to be the leader, and despite denying Christ at His trial, Peter was the same boldly preached to thousands on Pentecost. At first, thousands became Christians, but then a few months later, the second in that inner circle, James was put to death for his faith. But what about John? If Peter were to lead, and James to be martyred, what did Jesus ask John to do? Jesus called Him take care of His mother.

While Peter was out preaching, and later on Paul became the greatest evangelist of all time, John stayed home, and there accomplished two things: He wrote about Jesus and He took care of Mary. Maybe there were days when John wondered why he couldn’t have a more exciting ministry. Why couldn’t he go on a mission trip, schedule a speaking tour, or organize the growing church? In fact, after the first few chapters of the book of Acts, John disappears from our view entirely. It wasn’t that he wasn’t as smart, couldn’t speak well or know how to lead. The central issue of John’s life was that He was asked by Jesus to take care of someone most precious to Jesus: His mom!

In memory-care ministry, we are not asked to speak to large crowds, to oversee the construction of a new church or to travel overseas. Instead, Jesus calls us to enter a world that others hope to avoid, and many would like to forget. So, on days when you wonder if you are making any difference, you feel exhausted, or confused, just remember John. When we read through the New Testament, we don’t find a single word that John said, and yet he was called the disciple whom Jesus loved. You are likewise loved by Jesus, and He will fill you with His love for others as you continue to trust Him and just take care of mom!

God Loves Ordinary People!

/ pastorpete51 / 6 Comments

And Elisha said to her, “What shall I do for you? Tell me what have you in the house?” And she said, “Your servant has nothing in the house except a jar of oil.” 2 Kings 4:2 ESV

Often when we face problems, we wonder if we should pray. After all, we reason, why would God be concerned with our needs, when there are other far greater needs in the world all around us? We wonder why a big God, would be concerned with our ordinary needs. But in this brief story in the book of second Kings, we meet a poor and rather unimportant widow, whose debts mattered to God. Just as her scenario though scarcely remarkable, mattered to God, so God is interested in our needs today. Though there were certainly many other needy widows at that time, and we don’t know why God didn’t send Elisha to others, what we do know is that this lady asked for help. Maybe we are too embarrassed by our problems to ask for help, but God isn’t ashamed of us or our needs. He may simply be waiting for us to ask so that we can be ready for the answer He sends.

Sometimes we don’t ask God’s help, not only because we think that our issue isn’t important enough, but also because we think we aren’t important enough. Yet, despite what the media, our neighbors or even our family think or say, the Bible tell us that we are made in God’s image. All of us in some way are a reflection of the Creator of this entire universe., Though no one else may think much of us, God thinks the world of us, and He cares so much for our needs, that He sent His only Son to die in our place. To God, there are no big and little people. no big or small needs. We all are precious to Him and the one who watches sparrows and widows, also cares about us today!

Team Ministry

/ pastorpete51 / 2 Comments

All of you together are Christ’s body, and each of you is a part of it. 1 Corinthinas12:27 NLT

Many of us have been blessed to spend a single Sunday afternoon, singing or serving communion at a nursing home. But to carry on a long-term ministry outreach in our community calls for the teamwork of the body of Christ. None of us possess all the gifts, and our schedules are often dictated by things out of our control. People get sick, travel to visit family or have the water heater start leaking. That is when having other people pitching in makes a big difference. We were richly blessed this past Sunday at Discovery Villages to have my friend Ed come to play the piano. After seven years of singing along with my guitar, our residents were delighted to have a talented pianist leading us in the sweet hymn, “O! How I love Jesus!” I hope you will enjoy singing along with us and that you might consider getting involved in long-term care ministry in your own community. Have a blessed weekend everybody!