Nursing Home Ministry

Come Bless the Lord

/ pastorpete51 / 1 Comment

Come, bless the Lord, all you servants of the Lord,
    who stand by night in the house of the Lord! Psalm 134:1

What can I say about today’s monthly outdoor worship at Sunshine Christian Retirement Village? It was cold (by Florida standards) and we were old! The breezy not quite 60 degree weather had us shivering between hymns – but God showed up! We sang, heard each other’s prayer requests and heard from the word. At the beginning of this New Year it seemed wholly appropriate to begin by singing A Mighty Fortress is Our God. Between chattering teeth, Luther’s classic hymn reminded us that opposition to the church is not unusual, in fact it has been standard operating procedure throughout the centuries.

Then we began the praise chorus from Psalm 134, “Come Bless the Lord.” In order to understand what the Psalmist wrote it is important to know that these servants were specifically chosen from the family of Asaph and their duty was both to guard and to give praise to the Lord in the temple both day and night. In this Psalm these musicians and guards had their duties at night, so maybe you could think of them as third shift worshipers!

Are you going through a dark third shift night in your life? Maybe during this time, God is giving you the opportunity to be one of his special servants who stand by night. Maybe your praise in the nighttime seasons gives God the opportunity to show others His grace and glory in a world that so desperately needs the light of the love of Jesus Christ. If you have not heard this little chorus I have posted a fun link to listen to. It is one of my favorites. God bless you and have a blessed Lord’s day as you stand both day and night in the house of the Lord!

Lift up your hands to the holy place and bless the Lord! May the Lord bless you from Zion, he who made heaven and earth! Psalm 134: 2-3

Carrying Precious Seed

/ pastorpete51 / 3 Comments

Psalm 126:6 He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.

The Bible nowhere promises that telling others about Jesus will always be easy, socially acceptable or applauded. In fact the early disciples were usually opposed, persecuted and in some cases imprisoned or even put to death. But no matter the obstacles, the work of sharing the good news of salvation through Jesus Christ goes on. It is a going forth and weeping all the while carrying precious seed. So it is with joy that I bring you a praise report this morning about our Nursing Home Christmas caroling. We not only were we given the opportunity to sing yesterday (No photos this time) but we were welcomed into a new facility. For those concerned about the Covid-19 situation let me explain that the setting of our meeting was an outdoor courtyard and we were all temperature checked on the way in. There was also plenty of social distancing and we kept our masks on until we started singing. And what a great time we had! At first it looked as if only two or three residents were coming, but by the time we began our fourth song, about eight more people had joined us and others were able to hear from windows that over looked the central courtyard area! All praise to our God who opens doors that no one can shut!

Nine months have passed of a dark night for our nursing home community with over 100,000 residents being snatched away from us in the United States alone. We must take these numbers seriously. The value of the lives of these most fragile and vulnerable to the virus are precious to God. But no virus or change of government changes our responsibility to bring the word of God’s good news of Jesus at Christmas. I was excited to see new people getting involved in the caroling and an enthusiastic staff singing along, serving hot chocolate and smores to the residents and us! With two more outdoor caroling events planned for this year I would encourage anyone with a desire to reach out to those in long term care to not give up and use every opportunity offered. Send Christmas cards (Write little personal notes in them). Raise finds to buy appropriate gifts. Our small group was able to purchase 35-40 large print Christmas devotionals to give out. Also don’t forget to include the staff in whatever you do, They have been on the front lines protecting lives and sometimes having to say goodbye to people they have loved. God is in control but He has given us the responsibility to carry the seed with weeping. If we will do our part then He has promised to supply the joy that follows when we return with songs of joy carrying the harvest home to Him!

Here are some photos from Christmases past but I hope to bring you some video from our meeting scheduled for Saturday. Pray for us! Ask God how you can be involved in your own community. Most of all – don’t give up! It will be worth it all in the end!

Getting Ready for a Crazy Christmas!

/ pastorpete51 / 2 Comments

Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. 2 Timothy 4:2 ESV

Often about Thanksgiving I put out a post giving advice on how to prepare a Christmas program for nursing homes. But this year the plans of mice and men have definitely gone astray in more ways than anyone could have imagined. Due to Covid-19 our world is in many ways completely out of season. Nothing works as it once did if it works at all. Whether you live here in Florida where getting into a nursing home is akin to infiltrating North Korea or in California where meeting even with family members for Thanksgiving is under siege we have a problem Houston!

But from the many years of experience the Apostle Paul had to draw on he gives both Timothy and us a word of timely advice – “Always be ready for change” Now truthfully I really hate change especially when it comes to things like Christmas. I love the gentle drifting of snowflakes out the window (though I guess I’ve already lost that by moving South!)For me nothing says Christmas like the sound of Pat Boone singing “O Holy Night or the aroma of my wife making her annual Christmas candy. But change is on the calendar for all of us. In small part by making a general nuisance of myself on the phone to various activities directors I have learned a few things that may be of help to you if you are thinking of doing some Nursing Home outreach this year.

First, ask if there is some kind of safe setting in which you or a small group of people can do something of a Christmas program including caroling, cards or small gifts. Our small group took an offering and purchased 36 of the Large Print Advent Readers which I wrote to give out. Second be flexible with your schedules. In the past we have done Christmas caroling and or a Pageant in the early evening but as we will be outside in the parking lot this year we got in the schedule for 3 PM. Last of all as always, prepare, prepare, prepare! It will be worth it when you come to those precious 30 – 40 minutes in which to share the love of Jesus and some holiday cheer for folks who have been under virtual house arrest since March.

Be encouraged! God is still in control. We have been able to schedule meeting for two different homes and to give our books at a third. If you have any questions on anything please feel free to contact me by email @ revpete5@gmail.com or ask them here on this post. The last eight months have been a learning experience for us all. One thing that never changes no matter the circumstances is the mission to go into all the world and tell people the good news of Jesus Christ. What better time than Christmas to get on board?