Comments on: Community for the Homebound

By: Sue

Sue — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 00:55:52 +0000

Perhaps the lady whop is 87 years old could have people come to her and have church in her home. As church is not the building but the people who meet there. I remember years ago when I was involved with an organization called PrayerGroups for Schools (parents etc) praying for their children in school. There were a group of elderly Christian women in senior living community who were encouraged to pray for students in the high school near them. A young church leader would drop in and see them and give them prayer points – they felt they were doing something useful and the students benefited from their prayers.

Community is where a group of Christians meet wherever. I tell the students I teach religious instruction to that the classroom is a church when we are learning about the good news of Jesus.

Thank you for the many words of encouragement you send out.

In His wonderful love Sue

By: Randy

Randy — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 00:53:53 +0000

Our local church (for context, I will allow it to mean a building where people meet to “have church”) has amassed a few brothers and sisters (not members) over the years, who can no longer assemble with us. We identify them as our “homebound” disciples.

We have a very special group of ministers, deacons (or any other label you want to add) that put together monthly devotionals, church information, prayer concerns, and the like for them; and then at the first of the month they go to them. We have others that will fill in the gap with phone calls, visits, and cards.

As I have told them many times, they are not to worry (fret) over the fact that their bodies will no longer assist their spirits in getting them to a place they want to be (the building we identified earlier as ‘church’). When the people can’t get to the church…the church (brothers and sisters in the faith) goes to the people.

Just this past Wednesday evening, our time of gathering for prayer and praise, I put on the board the following, “Church – a community of connected people, who share a common passion and who have a common destination.”

A family that operates from the blueprint God provided will stay connected!

May God add His special grace to these words and bring clarity to the discerning heart.

Randy

By: Gail

Gail — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 00:46:14 +0000

While helping others is Christianlike, you can not help people and serve God if there is no one to be helped. Sometimes being in that community is being open to accepting help from others. This is not as easy as it seems. When you have been helping others all your life, it is difficult to start accepting that help, and there is a lesson there.

Also their are areas to serve when you are homebound. The quick thoughts are babysitting, sewing, mending, or just being a grandparent to a child in need.

Gail

By: Renee

Renee — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 00:43:48 +0000

Phil,

After reading your post, I wanted to chime in. There are others out here with similar problems. For instance, I am a single Mom of a disabled little boy. His disease is debilitating and prevents us from mainstream activities like Sunday morning fellowship. Because it’s almost impossible to make special accommodations for him at church, we are forced to reside at home and communicate with the saints via phone or email. It’s difficult because we seek to be there but no one seems to understand or care that we are “on the outside looking in”.

Respectfully Submitted,

Renee

By: Miriam

Miriam — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 00:37:04 +0000

Hey Phil
Just thought this was great! I’ve never seen one your guys ask for input. I read your pieces looking for answers to my questions. This is cool!

I’m a 56 year old woman who may be facing this dilemma one day. I pray Jesus returns before that happens but my answer to this person’s question is very simple. Community means community. My in laws are 84. We visit them. Take them out to eat, etc. They are still mobile. My father in law is on a walker and has difficulty on some terrains so I feel he will be homebound soon. Their local church provides visitation to the elderly and the sick. Jesus didn’t try to do it all. He said, “Go and make disciples of all men!”. These disciples have families. A strong family unit takes care of each other.

Local church communities need to bring fellowship to the homes of the home bound. It’s simple. The elderly have the same needs as a teenager. They will miss their friends. I don’t know how many times my kids said that to me. “I want to see my friends!”. That could be old or young. Parents let their kids have friends over. Kids let your parents have friends over! It’s role reversal. The kids provide for the elderly parents. The parents provided. Now it’s the kid’s turn. The parents of the church provided for the kids, now it’s their turn to provide for them. Simple! Just do it! No lip service or good intentions. ACT!

Your sister in Christ
Miriam

By: Rogette Bickerstaff

Rogette Bickerstaff — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 15:18:43 +0000

Take the service to them! Maybe some folks from church would be willing to have service with them at their home.

By: David

David — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 12:53:27 +0000

My situation is unique. I have been injured by DDT and mercury. I am chemically sensitive to what people wear on themselves and on their clothes. I can not tolerate perfume, cologne, aftershave, deodorant,scented laundry detergents, dryer sheets or any scented products of any kind. So if others wanted to visit or I invite them they’d have to come fragrence free. It’s a lifestyle change that does not leave much room for socializing unless it’s outside and upwind.

By: Frances

Frances — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 03:51:22 +0000

We are a small rural congregation. We as a congregation meet in the home of one of our members 90+ years old on Sunday evenings when she is unable to meet at the building.
In the past when both of my in-laws were home bound a group from church met in their home after evening services for singing, scripture reading and communion. This was every week for several years. A group of precious friends were around her bed singing just hours before she slipped away from us.

By: Nancy

Nancy — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 20:07:32 +0000

I know of someone who\’s been homebound for several years because of health restrictions, & yet she has been faithful at sending notes & cards, with inserts like bookmarks or scriptures, to so many people. My mother, up until the day she died, was committed to doing that, too. Using the computer, as others have pointed out, is another way to reach out from home.
Being a prayer warrior is another way to minister & lift up those in need, plus thank God for His many blessings.
If her church has a \"card ministry\" to send notes to people for various reasons (death in family, new member, new baby, welcome to visitors, or \"we\’ve missed you\"), she could volunteer to take that on. A staff member could keep her updated on whom to send notes to on a weekly basis.
The Bible makes it clear that we are to respect our elderly men & women, and give honor to their wisdom & roles as mentors. Perhaps there could be a women\’s study in her home, led by her or someone else, for women new to marriage & parenthood, needing encouragement & support.
Or why not invite others over, ask them to bring along a food item, & have an informal potluck & games or study together at times? There are probably others widowed or divorced, at home alone & needing fellowship with other women dealing with the same issues. It\’s amazing how much better a meal tastes when you have someone to share it with!

By: Mary Sue

Mary Sue — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 18:30:31 +0000

As the caregiver for two in their eighties in our family I beg in their behalf for their churches to connect. They are in different care centers in different stages of dementia. One has an absolutely fabulous Hospice volunteer who visits almost every week. It gives her a chance to have someone care besides family. And it gives me peace to know that if I am unable to be there I can call on this volunteer to check on her. She will have a familiar person to see her.

The other family member is very social, rides the bus to church weekly. But NO ONE from church visits, some send cards, but no one takes the responsibility to help her get to their care group…isn’t that a loving group!! I would love for there to be someone outside of family that I could call when we are all gone out of town to check in with her, to take her to the beauty shop. That is selfish on my part, but I know that there are young families who need to be teaching their children to be around old folks. These folks have the same attention span of the children, so visits don’t need to be long. Every time I take children to either facility many faces light up. What a service and teaching experience is being missed!

Family member number two always has a “project” person at the center who she is helping get acquainted, helping adjust. But she yearns for community outside those walls.

To those able bodied and mobile who might be reading this, I was the one who didn’t visit hospitals, and certainly not care centers. God is growing me each week as I become more comfortable stopping and kneeling to the white haired folks who are so lonely because no one or only a few take the time to stop and visit. My prayer is that whatever your group is you either “adopt” a homebound person and be flesh to them or schedule a time to visit the general population in a care center or visit someone on your church’s homebound list. Cards and calls are great, but don’t take the place of flesh!