This month we are in Guatemala! It is so refreshing being here & it is a beautiful place! I am so excited about our ministry this month!! I along with 9 others are spending our days visiting & loving on the elderly in a local retirement home! I LOVE each day & I always look forward to seeing those friendly faces that I hope to bless, & in return they bless me abundantly!!
Our first day at the retirement home, it was quite overwhelming! As we walked into the building we immediately notice the bed with a body laying in it, it was covered in a white sheet from head to toe & flowers placed on the sheet! It began to sink in that this is the end for many of them. This is their "life" & this is possibly the place they would die at. Realizing this reality, the thoughts crossed my mind, "What do I have to offer these people? How am I to relate to them? Or encourage them?" Feeling a heavy heart about this ministry, I knew God brought us here for a reason & that He would reveal to us our purpose & vision for this retirement home.
At first it was challenging to see what our ministry looked like, many challenges came up. The majority of elderly had major health problems & physical limits which meant they couldn't leave their wheelchair, some even couldn't move their arms or legs. On top of that, we quickly found out that the language barrier left feelings of frustration & even feelings of helplessness. I know personally, I wanted so badly to be able to share with them stories from my life, the Bible, encourage them, hear their stories & just have healthy encouraging conversations; but they couldn't understand me & I couldn't understand them. What does ministry look like if I can't even have a conversation with them?
It didn't take long to realize love is not limited to mutual languages. Love doesn't only appear in one or two specific ways. Love is felt, seen, & obvious through quality time, smiles, & through the eyes of Jesus. I had to be reminded that I can't communicate clearly to them, but I have Christ living in me & through Him what seems impossible is not; the love of Christ knows no limits or boundaries. You cannot hide the love of Christ, it is like a shining star, a blazing sun, it goes beyond our own understanding! & God called me this month to a retirement home to show the love of Christ without using words, a challenge that is too big for my own understanding; but the past 4 days I've spent with the elderly, I've seen it played out. Christ's love outshines language barriers & it is something so powerful it cannot be hidden!!
Realizing what a precious gift I've been given this month, I see each person I encounter as an opportunity to pour this overflowing love into! I've seen faces of sadness & hopelessness turned into laughter, joy & dancing! I've realized that some of them only want someone to sit with them & hold their hand, they want company, friendship & to feel noticed. If my time in the retirement home this month can light a new flame of hope in any of their eyes, I feel my time was well spent. My heart this month is to just love on them, & remind them through quality time, smiles & the eyes of Christ that they are loved, cherished & there is so much hope!
I am feeling blessed by this amazing ministry & that I get to be a part of it! I look forward to sharing more stories of how love which goes beyond words can change hearts, atmospheres & can give hope!
Rise in the presence of the aged, show respect for the elderly & revere your God, I am the Lord. Leviticus 19:32
The silver-haired head is a crown of glory, it is found in the way of righteousness.
Proverbs 16:31
Those who are planted in the house of the Lord, shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bear fruit in old age; they shall be fresh & flourishing.Psalm 92:13-14
