Covenanter Witness Vol. 86 - Rparchives.org

our friends in the Home, and sometimes weare in need of being bolstered ourselves —and never are we disappointed. Courage isa hallmark of this place, and it is beautifulto see. It wears various colors and shapesand comes in different sizes, but it's there,and always evident, even with the quietermembers of the Home family.And humor! That, too, is one of therare gifts that appears in abundance fromtime to time, and is never very far from thesurface at any given time. The Homefamily enjoy a good story and can be heardchuckling again and again at the telling andre-telling of a favorite.Compassion? Yes, indeed. It isuplifting and challenging to those of uswho have fewer years on our life record tosee the little acts of kindness andthoughtfulness that spring from a Christianheart. Many of these are performed dailyand regularly, with no expectation of anyother reward than the simple satisfactionof having helped another in need. Visitorsare constantly surprised at the activity ofour residents, seeing them operating theelevator, helping to clear tables following ameal, reading to one who cannot see well,feeding another who needs help, stoppingto chat with the downhearted, offering towrite letters or run errands for those incapableof doing these little everydaytasks. And "inasmuch as ye have done itunto one of the least of these my brethren,ye have done it unto Me."Since it is Wednesday morning andthere are no other conflicts, we will announcethroughout the building via theintercom that the usual Music Hour will beheld in the lounge just before dinner.There are all kinds of tastes in musicrepresented in the Home family, just as inother groups, and we try to arrangeprograms with variety and appeal. Fromour excellent library of stereo recordings,we have furnished many a relaxing hour ofmusical enjoyment. There are some, ofcourse, just like you, perhaps, who wouldprefer to occupy themselves with otherthings than music, but since they knowthis is voluntary and will serve one ortwenty, they are free to choose their ownactivity. And for some, the tasks involvedin helping each other mean foregoing thepleasure of the Music Hour.One Wednesday a month is BoardDay, and residents passing through the hallnear the office like to stop and count thecoats to see how many are in attendance atthe monthly meeting in the ConferenceRoom. And they know that during aperiod of free time for members of theBoard not involved in special committeemeetings, some of the women might stopby their rooms to say hello. (A goodportion of Board members are busy withspecial meetings and find Board Day to bev 'ery time-consuming for them.) Boardwomen bring their own sandwiches fornoontime, and the Home cooks prepare aninviting salad and a beverage. Committeework often goes on during lunch, for theopportunities to be together are hard tocome by for these busy women, and eachone must be used to full advantage.Another Wednesday is the day forthe podiatrist, who comes to his patientsrather than asking them to go to him. Howwe appreciate this kind of service by busyprofessional men who take the time toshow they are human and understand thelimitations imposed by age and infirmity.Our house physician is one of these rarepersons, and we count on his understandingas well as his skills, knowingthat they work together to treat the wholeperson. He is on call at any time, andmakes regular stops as well — alwayscheerful and ready to serve the person whoneeds him.There are favorite TV programs, andin some rooms, hands are not idle; ratherthey are busily fashioning the articleswhich go on sale for the Busy Bees HobbyClub and which have gone to many areas ofthe world. The proceeds from these salesare used to further the work of Christ'sKingdom both here and abroad.Wednesday evening the Home familygathers in the chapel-lounge for a prayermeeting hour. Leaders are carefullychosen to correspond with their knowledgeof and enthusiasm for the topic of theevening, and the time is most profitable tothose who attend — and to the entirechurch. The thirst for information leads tointelligent and earnest prayer as they comeboldly to the Throne of Grace, often inYOUR behalf or that of YOURcongregation.One complaint we sometimes hear isthat the calendar is so full of activities that"there's just too much going on!" In spiteof this, the Home members are not asoccupied with the busy-ness of life as theyonce were or as you are; therefore they dohave time for meditation and prayer. Theyhave time for sharing — experiences andopinions, prayer requests and answers —and their fellowship with God is so realthat they respond eagerly to opportunitiesto counsel with others and to witness forHim. Where physical infirmities haveslowed down the former pace, the desire toserve has not diminished, and keen mindsare grappling with current problems bothin and out of the church. An old sloganpopularized a women's magazine for years,which paraphrased for our purposes mightread "NEVER UNDERESTIMATE THEPOWER OF GOD WORKINGTHROUGH THE HOME FAMILY."Is vour COVENANTER WITNESSof July 22, 19"0 yellowed? Lost? Thrownout? It is full of information regarding theHome, which is. after all. YOUR Home —the agency of our church set up to care forour elderly friends, many of whom havebeen faithful servants of our Lord in allparts of the world. Since that issue of theWITNESS was printed, we have lost someHome members who have gone on toglory, and others have come to us. Amongthese are some well known missionariesand ministers' wives, who have brought tous their willingness to serve and to add tothe ministry of the Home family to, andthroughout, the church at large.What can the Home possibly do forthe church? Aren't they dependent on thechurch to do for them? Discuss this in yourmeeting, and see what ideas emerge. Themore you know about the Home, the betteryou understand its needs and its contributionsto the church. For this is not aplace of mere stagnant existence, andpeople are not here just to put in their lastdays. Get acquainted with the Home —your Home — and learn how you and themembers here can work together to serveGod.Geriatrics is becoming an expandingfield as the needs of the elderly must bemet. Mostly this is being done on thepagan level, humanistically. Our Home isdedicated wholly to serving God and thosewho love Him, and therefore the approachwe need is a different and unique one.Perhaps some of you have been gifted withideas which could be shared with theBoard and—or the administration; thesewould be welcomed and given carefulattention.PRAY that the Home will becomemore of a responsibility to the entirechurch, and especially challenging to thosewho join the Reformed PresbyterianWoman's Association.PRAY for ways of manifesting yourinterest in the Home itself, the reason forits existence, and the people it serves.PRAY for the influence, past,present, and future, of those who call this"home." Their contacts can be the pebblethat widens the ripple to a wave of influencefor good.PRAY for Home members who findit difficult to adjust to group living; thosewho are limited by infirmity and thus oftenfrustrated and liable to think themselvesuseless; those who feel the pressuresbearing down at times, thus tempting themto show less of their Christianity.PRAY for the administration andBoard who assume responsibility for YOUwho maintain this Home. State and federalrules are becoming more and morestringent, some of which are made fromthe humanistic approach with little or noconcept of a Christian home for the elderlyand its ministry.PRAY that sufficient monies andendowments will come in to guarantee asee pat;e 14APRIL 21, 1971 13