BLESS, BELIEVE, BELONG.
Three words we hear a lot of at Hope Fellowship. When we as a church, or we as individuals, have a balance of these three aspects of life, there is a healthy balance to life. I was thinking about these three words as I thought about the people I work with. I work at Glen Hill Strathaven and Glen Hill Marnwood, two Long Term Care facilities in Bowmanville. When I think about Bless, Believe, Belong in the residents’ lives it hits home about how unbalanced their lives can become when illness strikes.
For many of the residents BLESSing others has been a big part of their lives. They are used to hosting people in their homes, making meals or helping out around the house when a neighbour, family or friends needs it but now they are no longer able to help the way they used to and they find they are in need of being blessed. Many times, this loss means a loss of identity and purpose.
Many of the residents have also lost their sense of BELONGing. When they were in the community they were often part of organizations, churches, groups, work but now they often feel the only place they belong is with other old, sick people. Often this is not inspiring for them and they struggle to feel appreciated and loved.
For those who have a strong faith, it offers hope and strength as they deal with the losses in their lives. But many have not worked on their BELIEFS and suddenly find themselves searching for answers and peace.
The need for spiritual support is great. Over the last few months I have been praying for guidance in how to minister to the almost 300 residents, their families and staff. Earlier this year God put me in touch with a group called The Mission Activators, a ministry of Classis Quinte (the regional group of Christian Reformed Churches to which Hope Fellowship belongs). They look for where God is moving and walk alongside those who are looking to reach out to the community. I have started a partnership with them and we are looking to find creative ways of meeting the needs at Strathaven and Marnwood together.
In September we will be starting a pilot project. We will be bringing a group of volunteers together to start a Missional Community at Strathaven. This community will look for ways to BLESS one home area and start offering an inter-generational group for the residents to BELONG to, all the while spending time learning and growing in BELIEVING.
How can you help? In two ways.
First, Pray! Pray for the Missional Community, pray for the volunteers, pray for the residents, their families and staff and pray for me and the mission activators as we lead this together.
Second, as you pray listen for God’s call in your life. Is God calling YOU to participate in this exciting, new ministry? If you wonder if God is calling you to participate or if you have questions please contact me through the church office or email me revelizabeth@dchomes.ca.
We all need someone to BLESS, somewhere to BELONG and someone to BELIEVE in. Help make this a reality for residents in Long Term Care.
- Elizabeth Guillaume Koene
Three words we hear a lot of at Hope Fellowship. When we as a church, or we as individuals, have a balance of these three aspects of life, there is a healthy balance to life. I was thinking about these three words as I thought about the people I work with. I work at Glen Hill Strathaven and Glen Hill Marnwood, two Long Term Care facilities in Bowmanville. When I think about Bless, Believe, Belong in the residents’ lives it hits home about how unbalanced their lives can become when illness strikes.
For many of the residents BLESSing others has been a big part of their lives. They are used to hosting people in their homes, making meals or helping out around the house when a neighbour, family or friends needs it but now they are no longer able to help the way they used to and they find they are in need of being blessed. Many times, this loss means a loss of identity and purpose.
Many of the residents have also lost their sense of BELONGing. When they were in the community they were often part of organizations, churches, groups, work but now they often feel the only place they belong is with other old, sick people. Often this is not inspiring for them and they struggle to feel appreciated and loved.
For those who have a strong faith, it offers hope and strength as they deal with the losses in their lives. But many have not worked on their BELIEFS and suddenly find themselves searching for answers and peace.
The need for spiritual support is great. Over the last few months I have been praying for guidance in how to minister to the almost 300 residents, their families and staff. Earlier this year God put me in touch with a group called The Mission Activators, a ministry of Classis Quinte (the regional group of Christian Reformed Churches to which Hope Fellowship belongs). They look for where God is moving and walk alongside those who are looking to reach out to the community. I have started a partnership with them and we are looking to find creative ways of meeting the needs at Strathaven and Marnwood together.
In September we will be starting a pilot project. We will be bringing a group of volunteers together to start a Missional Community at Strathaven. This community will look for ways to BLESS one home area and start offering an inter-generational group for the residents to BELONG to, all the while spending time learning and growing in BELIEVING.
How can you help? In two ways.
First, Pray! Pray for the Missional Community, pray for the volunteers, pray for the residents, their families and staff and pray for me and the mission activators as we lead this together.
Second, as you pray listen for God’s call in your life. Is God calling YOU to participate in this exciting, new ministry? If you wonder if God is calling you to participate or if you have questions please contact me through the church office or email me revelizabeth@dchomes.ca.
We all need someone to BLESS, somewhere to BELONG and someone to BELIEVE in. Help make this a reality for residents in Long Term Care.
- Elizabeth Guillaume Koene
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