Spring, 2019
Greetings to all our
friends and supporters!
It looks like we escaped a
typical northwest Pennsylvania winter this year. It really wasn't too
bad and now we are anticipating Springtime, with its sense of
“newness”, as the gray and brown landscape comes to life!
Sometimes living in the country has its downsides (dirt roads being
one of them!), but knowing any day that the scene out our back window
will change from brown to green makes it worthwhile.
In some ways, our ministry
to the elderly in the nursing homes of northwestern Pennsylvania and
northeastern Ohio is like the change of seasons. 90% of those
residing in the nursing homes and assisted living facilities are
merely “religious”. All of their lives they have been “going
through the motions” of Christianity without actually knowing the
Saviour, living a sort of “winter” existence. It is so rewarding
to see someone who has lived without the hope of Heaven come to know
the Lord Jesus Christ, and to see their “season” of life change
from one of a barren winter to the rebirth of springtime.
I thought it might be good
to share a few “tips” by way of our quarterly letters to help our
supporting churches who are conducting their own nursing home
ministries. Although the majority of the homes that we minister in
are located in Pennsylvania, I have to say that we have seen much
fruit for the Kingdom of God in Ohio. The Ashtabula County Nursing &
Rehabilitation Center is a place where the people really enjoy
hearing the Word of God preached. Many have been saved there, and the
staff is really “on board” with what we are doing, which really
helps. In fact, we have one nurse who does, what I call,
“pre-evangelism”! She is born-again and openly shares her faith
with residents. On occasion, she has brought me to someone after our
service, whom she has already witnessed to, and who is ready to
receive Christ. What a blessing that is!
Having said that, let me
say that occasionally I hear from a church that is having trouble
getting into a nursing home to minister, or has been told there will
be limitations on what they can say or do. A nursing home must
provide religious services when desired by the residents. When there
is a problem in bringing such services, it is usually due to an
Activity Director who, for some reason, has no interest in them, or
does not want to be bothered gathering people together for such a
service. An initial meeting with the AD, sharing your burden and
interest in being a help to her in providing a scheduled activity,
may solve the problem. If that doesn't work, speaking with the
administrator of the nursing home may be required to get you on the
calendar. Unfortunately, much effective nursing home ministry
rises or falls on a
cooperative activities staff. We have experienced some difficulties
where we have been “pre-empted” on the schedule by some other
activity and were not told until we arrived for our service. That can
happen occasionally. When it happens repeatedly, it's time to find
out why. We have had to step away from several homes over the years
who apparently didn't consider our ministry as a vaulable asset to
their schedule of activities. I will say, though, that is rare. On
the upside, we have never been asked to “adjust” our message or
methods over the past 13 years, for which we are very grateful. Part
of that, I believe, is due to the fact that we have been blessed with
AD's who understand and appreciate why we are there. If your church
is thinking about starting a nursing home ministry, and we can be a
help in any way, please contact us. We would consider it a privilege
to come and do a seminar that will provide some real encouragement to
your people to get invovled in reaching the mostly “unreached”
segment of society.
I know many ask about
Priscilla's eye problem. She continues to require the injections on a
6 week rotation. The retinal surgeon is satisfied that these
treatments are working and believe that they can maintain her current
vision by the injections. She was recently experiencing some
additional pain during the treatments due to the change in the way
they prep the eye prior to the injection. The doctor graciously has
required his staff to do everything possible in prepping the eye to
make sure the treatment is as painless as possible (of course it is
impossible to eliminate all pain) by going back to the previous
procedure which made her a little more comfortable. It is
disheartening to realize that she will have to continue these
treatment. There is no other remedy for this problem (believe me, we
have researched this!), and her retinal surgeon group is highly
recommended. So, she would appreciate your continued prayers.
Thankfully, Medicare pays for virtually all of the costs of
treatment.
As always, we want to
thank you for your prayers and support as we seek to represent you on
the mission field of the nursing homes of northwestern Pennsylvania
and northeastern Ohio. May God continue to bless you all. If you
would like us to come and provide an update of our ministry at your
missions conference, please contact us.
Norm & Priscilla Aabye
C.A.R.E. Ministries
