Nursing Home Ministry

Higher Ground

/ pastorpete51 / 5 Comments 
I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. 
Philippians 1:23 ESV

About ten years ago, I used to pay a weekly visit to an elderly couple from our church, who were no longer able to come to the Sunday services. Since they enjoyed singing, so I would always bring my guitar. Though their apartment was small, they made room for a cage where they kept two little parakeets, and the highlight of our singing sessions was when those two parakeets joined in. During the slower hymns, they would tweet to each other and dance on their perch, but whenever we sang the hymn, “I’ll Fly Away” they got so excited that they flew right out of the open cage door and sat up above the kitchen cabinets, where they joyfully tweeted with all their might!

That memory from years ago came back to me yesterday with the passing of yet another dear friend into the presence of Jesus. It reminded me that while we are here on earth, we are in a body that like the bird cage is not our permanent home. We can sing and praise the Lord the best we can from our low perch, but at the time that God chooses we have an appointment to keep with Jesus. Because of His death and resurrection, our cage door has been opened and when we hear His voice, we will spread our own wings and fly up and away. There He has prepared a high and heavenly new perch from which we be able to sing a hymn of praise forever – on that highest ground of all!

More Than Memories

/ pastorpete51 / 4 Comments 
I will delight myself in Thy statutes. I will not forget Thy word. Psalm 119:16 KJV

When we are serving in memory care facilities, stirring memories is a great beginning, but as Christian workers, we must set higher goals. After all, in the facilities where those struggling with cognitive decline live there are others who are already doing that. They play songs from the distant past, present old movies and employ a variety of resources to stir up the residents’ minds. But God gave us music as a key to unlock a door, and we need to do more than just open it. We need to walk through that door with the Gospel. Now, I venture to say that you imagine that this is a tall order for folks who can barely recall their own names, and I will be the first to agree with you. Effectively sharing with our friends in memory care is a unique challenge that can only be overcome when the Holy Spirit is at work. Just as the message Jesus gave to the thief on the cross was very different from the challenges and teaching, He gave to His disciples, so our goals must be simpler and more direct. Though I occasionally begin a song by first sharing, an encouragement, or a memory of my own, most of the message is wrapped in the songs themselves. The wonderful thing about Hymns is not just that they are familiar, easy to sing or happy. The best hymns give the message of the Gospel in three to five verses. As I lead my friends in song, I try my best to lead them from, “This Little Light of Mine, through the Garden of Prayer, and ultimately all the way to the Old Rugged Cross. Though the specific song selection that you use may be different than mine, the trajectory should be the same. God has put us in places where very few others have the privilege of going, with a message so simple that even a child can understand and even our friends living in memory care can embrace! Memory loss, Parkinson’s, and Dementia create a seemly endless storm in the some of our loved ones and those precious to us. But when we stand with them in the eye of that storm, remember that Jesus is standing there with us. He is the Master of the Storm and the Pilot who can lead us safely into harbor.

It’s Saturday – But Sunday is Coming

/ pastorpete51 / 4 Comments 
It was the day of Preparation, and the Sabbath was beginning. The women who had come with him from Galilee followed and saw the tomb and how his body was laid. Then they returned and prepared spices and ointments. Luke 23:55-56 ESV

Now usually the phrase is, “It’s Friday, but Sunday’s coming.” but it is no less true on our Saturdays. Fridays are the time of suffering, but Saturday is more final still. The dead body of Jesus lay in the tomb. A stone was rolled across the entrance and two Roman guards stood outside. Do you ever wonder what the disciples were thinking, or how Mary the mother of Jesus as well as Mary Magdalene and the other faithful women were coping with the crushing weight of grief?

There are few audiences in America that may appreciate the depth of despair in which our faith is challenged to the max than people in long-term care. We were blessed yesterday to have Pastor Joe deliver this message to us, and the highpoint wasn’t his yelling, pounding on the podium or shouting (because none of that happened!). The highpoint was hearing the dear voices of residents echoing back to him, “But Sunday is coming!” Some have lost roommates, are suffering physically and feel forgotten by everyone. So, when they dan say with assurance, “But Sunday is Coming!”, their faith gets me excited, and I do hope that this sweet, simple message will also be a blessing to you on this Easter Saturday morning. No matter your situation, how big the stone lies across the entrance to the door of hope or how big the powers are that guard it: it may be Saturday in your life: “But Sunday is Coming!”