volunteers

Thank You Volunteers!

/ pastorpete51 / Leave a comment 
Shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly. 1 Peter 5:2 ESV

This is National Volunteer Week, and I want to shout out, “Thank you!” to all you who volunteer, especially those who do so in the name of the greatest volunteer of all – Jesus Christ! Though some people may refer to you as caregivers, the Bible calls you shepherds and shepherdesses. God has given you the special gift of helping to watch over one or more of His sheep. Today, I was invited to the volunteer’s brunch at Sunshine Christian Home and was blessed to hang out with people who give of their time and talents in so many different ways. Just as Jesus came willingly, so He sends us out to willingly go to others in His name. Rather than reel off a bunch of biblical lessons on why we do this, I thought today, I would simply share the faces of some folks who God has blessed me to serve or serve with over the years.

Photo by Gu00fcl Iu015fu0131k on Pexels.com

 

New Volunteer at Nursing Home!

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We are always praying for new volunteers to help out at the nursing home ministry. Honey came walking through right in the middle of our service this morning but nobody minded. In fact I ran down from the stage just to get a chance to visit with her and her friend Autumn.

How Nursing Home Volunteers can respond in the Corona Crisis

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I was sick and you visited me…Matthew 25

Being in the grip of public health emergency it is important to know how we as volunteers can help. Our first order of business is not to panic. Our precious friends in long term care already are dealing with serious personal medical situations as well as depression and loneliness. We need to find out what we can do to lift their load.

Secondly we need to face the Corona virus not as some mysterious plague but as another in a yearly cycle of serious diseases. Use common sense. Follow the directives of the facilities you are visiting. I go 3-4 times a week into different homes to sing. Each time I shower and change first then still use the hand sanitizer at the door as I sign in. I use another sanitizer between wards and then again on the way out the door. Once home I wash with warm soap and water. If all this sounds like a lot of trouble remember that sickness can be whole a lot more trouble than soap!

Last of all we need to not only pray but also be creative and upbeat. Keep in touch by text with staff or other volunteers who are out sick. A phone call or even a card can do as much as any medicine in the face of discouragement. We are serving on the front lines of both a medical as well as a spiritual battle. We must keep our heads about us and trust the Lord. He has sent us to bring a message of hope and life and this is the time to buckle up and be ready for anything. He has promised to be with us and He just might want to use you to remind someone else of that today!