Dear Christian Family,
Through the love and grace of Father God in Jesus Christ by the Holy Spirit in your heart and ours we whole-hardheartedly say, “We greet each of you with a prayer for joy and peace to you all! May your life blossom with the fruit of the Holy Spirit for all to see as you daily commune with Him in your heart!”
In many cases our point of view of nursing home residents is in the light of their obvious and overwhelming need. Our focus in visiting them is what we can give them. And our sensitivity to their needs and what we have to offer to give them is certainly a product of and a reflection of our Heavenly Father’s heart! This has always been and will always be part and parcel of “nursing home ministry.”
There is a common testimony from nursing home ministers that they go to “give” to the residents the ministry of Jesus that He has laid on their heart…and in that process, they many times leave the facility refreshed in their spirit, strengthened in their heart, and blessed by the grace poured out on them through the love and the gratefulness of the ones to whom they minister!
The grace of God and the love of God held in these humble vessels of the Father’s care is a resource of great significance pent up in care facilities throughout the country. This resource is the effectual and fervent prayers of the saints who call long-term care settings their home.
We have a suggestion for those of you who are involved in direct Christian ministry in nursing homes. There are probably some residents in the facility in which you serve that would jump at the opportunity to pray strategically for the needs of others around them. Of course this would include their fellow residents. But the prayer needs that you help them concentrate on could include the staff and owners of the facility; other nearby nursing homes; the leadership of local churches; the lost souls living in their community; the fire, law enforcement and medical emergency personnel; the local government, the state government, the national government; local doctors and hospitals; local schools; safety for local construction projects; crime; the legal system and local courts; etc. You get the idea.
Let the Lord lead you if you decide to try this initiative. Fashion your approach to fit the individuals you are ministering to. Start small and work up. Maybe you could make prayer time a designated segment of your service. Maybe you could start a regular “prayer group.”
This focus on the prayer potential in nursing home ministry has been championed by Jerry and Lin Fagerland of Home Free Ministries for several years. They have developed great ideas and resources to facilitate such a program. To learn more from them, visit their website at homefreeministries.org or contact them at (319) 360-7132.
As recorded in Luke 18:1, we are told that our Lord Jesus teaches us that we “ought always to pray and not to faint.” God wants us to talk to Him in prayer. If we pray, we may never see the results on this side of heaven; but, when we do pray for the needs of others, we can assure ourselves that we are participating in our Father’s wise, loving, divine intervention on their behalf.
And, we would be remiss if we did not thank each of you who support our work, especially those of you who pray for us. May our Father God bless you richly by His grace!
Love in Christ,
Jerry and Dar Johnson