Change a Life in 20 Minutes: Ministering to the Chronically Ill
Lisa Copen
Rest Ministries, the largest Christian organization that specifically serves the chronically ill, recently did a survey and asked people to "List some of the programs or resources a church could offer to make it more inviting comfortable" They have provided a sampling of some of the 800 responses, all of which could be done in 20 minutes or less.
1. Send out emails that are encouraging.
2. Make an effort to confirm that the handicapped stalls in the restroom are functioning and clean.
3. Padded chairs or cushions, room for wheelchairs, and plenty of room for my family to sit with me.
4. Be open-minded about a support group for the chronically ill like HopeKeepers. It would make me feel very special, knowing that there is an understanding of people's needs that are not always visible.
5. More handicapped parking.
6. Educate the ushers that people arriving late may have difficulty walking or getting out of cars and will need some assistance.
7. Have some volunteers who will call the chronically ill people just to check on them when they don't make it to church.
8. When suppers are given, I need help getting my meal or at least understanding from others that I won't be able to wait in a long line.
9. Be gentle when giving people big hugs. It can topple over or hurt a person.
10. Video tape the service to and put it on a DVD, don't just do a live web cast. My computer doesn't work that well.
11. Check out the church doors. Can someone with an illness open them with ease? If not, install a mechanical button to push them open.
12. Please don't tell me that if I really believed and had faith I would be healed by now. And don't insist how wonderful I look, because I know for a fact that I look terrible and miserable that day.
13. Offer me ways to serve within the church that can be performed regularly, but not on a set schedule. I really want to contribute, but I need some flexibility so that I can do a job when I feel well enough.
14. Provide sermon notes in case I can't make it to the worship service and want to listen/take notes later.
15. Acknowledge National Invisible Chronic Illness Awareness Week. Rest Ministries has a nice book list of top 100 Christian books for the chronically ill. It would make a nice display in our bookstore that week.
16. Just mention about chronic illness! Talk about it in sermons as one of the challenges many people face just like unemployment.
17. Let me know about Christian volunteers from church that will clean house for small fee. Some have offered to clean my house, but I am not able to accept charity yet, but neither can I afford to pay a regular house cleaning service.
18. Help even a fraction with the cost of encouraging books and resources for the church library for the chronically ill.
19. Remember there are lots of caregivers in the church--not just caregivers of parents, but spouses and ill children too.
20. Provide copies for free of the sermon on CD.
Get a free download of 200 Ways to Encourage a Chronically Ill Friend from "Beyond Casseroles" by Lisa Copen, just
http://www.restministries.org/res-ezine_ill.htm) subscribe to HopeNotes invisible illness ezine at Rest Ministries. Lisa founded of
http://www.invisibleillness.com/ Invisible Illness Week
