MARCH 2008 NEWSLETTER

Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these, ye have done it unto me. Matt: 25:40 (KJV)
Salem Village Nursing Home Paradise Park Assisted Living
Rosewood Care Center Lakewood Nursing Home
What a beautiful month we have celebrated, the Resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The Cantata that was performed by our church choir was beautiful, entitled “Alive in Christ” and the words of each song was a beautiful picture of all He has done for us as it proclaimed the true meaning of Easter. It was a great day.
Several of the choir members joined us at the Lakewood Nursing Home in Plainfield on the first Sunday of March and we sang several songs from the Cantata. The residents really enjoyed it and the Ministry Team was excited to have so many participate. It is such a Blessing to be with people who have willing hearts to serve the Lord and the fellowship is as sweet as we serve the Lord together.
One of the residents at Lakewood enjoys singing and she has teamed up with Karl Darley several times and sang a duet and it is beautiful. She is scheduled to sing again on the first Sunday of April. What a Blessing and they sing so beautifully together.
We had a record high attendance at both Lakewood Nursing Home in Plainfield and Rosewood Rehabilitation & Nursing Center in Joliet during the month of March and that was really exciting. We have been getting a few calls from various people who have loved ones they would like us to visit and what a joy that is. We want your calls because that is what we enjoy doing, we love sharing Jesus Christ with them and fellowshipping with them. That is what our Ministry is all about, we have been called to serve the Lord in this way and we want to answer the call and be found faithful so if you have someone you want us to visit, please, give me a call or e-mail me.
The story was told of an elderly gentleman in his 80’s that had a doctor’s appointment to have some stitches removed from his hand from a previous accident. The appointment was at 8:30 a.m. and upon arriving at the doctor’s office, he told them he was in a hurry because he had another appointment at 9:00 a.m. The nurse knowing that it would be over an hour before the doctor could see him, took his vital signs and had him take a seat. She noticed him watching his watch and getting very anxious and nervous. She decided to see what she could do to help him and after evaluating the wound, she saw it was well healed so she talked with the doctor and got his approval to remove the stitches so he could be on his way. While she was removing the stitches, she ask him where his next appointment was and he proceeded to tell her that he needed to go to the Nursing home to eat breakfast with his wife who was the victim of Alzheimer’s disease. As they talked, the nurse asked him if his wife would be upset if he was late. The gentleman replied that she no longer knew who he was, that she had not recognized him in over five years now. The nurse being surprised asked him, “And you still go every morning, even though she doesn’t know who you are”??? He smiled as he patted the nurse on her hand and said, “She doesn’t know me, but I still know who she is”.
This is a beautiful picture of love and reminds me of the Love of God. It doesn’t matter who I am or what I’ve done, Jesus loves me unconditionally. I’m just the clay and He is the potter that is shaping me into the image that He wants me to be. I trust and pray daily that others can see His image in me. The testing and the valleys we go through are refining us into His image and His likeness.
I heard a preacher give a great sermon illustration of how, when we go through times of trials and testing, times when we can’t feel God’s presence and he said “Imagine you sitting in a classroom with other students taking a test. You will notice the teacher is always silent when you are taking a test. It is very quiet, so quiet you can hear a pin drop. It doesn’t matter how much you would like to ask the teacher to give you the answer, he remains silent, and however, it is an open book test. So when you have conflicts and times in your life when things aren’t going right, and times when it seems that God is silent, all you have to do is read the BOOK, the “Bible” has all the answers. It is an open book test.
The Nursing Home Ministry is a great way for all the high school students to earn their credits for community service that is required by the high schools. If you are a student and you would like to serve with us in the Nursing Home Ministry, please get in touch with one of us so we can help you achieve your credits as you help us in the Ministry. There are many things that you can do and we would love having you join us.
We have had 2 weeks off in March and I felt like something was missing. Many of the residents at Paradise Park in New Lenox went out to be with their relatives on Easter Sunday and because of that, we cancelled the service. Then we had a 5th Sunday in March and we are always off on the 5th Sunday, so we are looking forward to the first Sunday in April where we will be at Lakewood in Plainfield.
We continue to visit weekly and have had some great visits, meeting many new people and continuing to minister to the ones we have known for a long time now. Imagine yourself in that situation, in a Nursing Home, just waiting for someone to care; someone to come along that you could talk with. They are lonely and discouraged, they are people just like you and I, but who are at the end of their life. They have so many things to share and we can learn so much from them and at the same time, we are Blessed because we have obeyed the call.
Our schedule for April is as follows:
Lakewood Nursing Home, Plainfield – April 6th, @ 2:30 p.m.
Salem Village, Joliet – April 13th @ 2:00 p.m.
Rosewood Rehab Center, Joliet - April 20th @ 2:00 p.m.
Paradise Park, New Lenox – April 27th @ 2:00 p.m.
Please come and join us, we need your talents. You will make a difference and God will bless you for it.
Respectfully submitted by Joyce Mancke jmancke@sbcglobal.net. 815-351-7659