John[1] spent most of lunchtime walking back and forth in front of the serving line. Attempts to engage him in conversation were met with a smile and silence. And as he paced he was observed speaking under his breath and laughing to himself. Clearly, he was not interested in engaging others nor did he notice the things happening around him.
Some of our residents hear and see things that others do not. Some are crippled with intense feelings of sadness. Still others have an incredibly difficult time getting along with peers and family. For many different reasons these residents, many who have been diagnosed with some form of mental disability, find their way to the Rescue Mission and provide a unique challenge as we attempt to get them the care they need.
Jesus offers us hope, peace and rest. He says in Matthew 11:28, “"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest”. Our resident friend, John was not experiencing this rest that Jesus offers. And as we thought of John in light of Jesus’ statement we were forced to ask ourselves several questions:
How do we connect with someone who doesn’t necessarily see the need to connect?
How do we build trust with another who finds it difficult to trust?
And how do we get help to someone who doesn’t believe they need help?
We will pray with and for him. We will give him the support that a consistent schedule, a regular diet and times of rest offer. We will assess his needs. We will find out where he’s been and where he needs to go. We will evaluate his medical issues. We will carefully listen to his concerns. We will connect him with other service providers who can assist in his care. And we will do this in a way that values him as a person and operates in his best interest. And hopefully as he grapples with the confusion that mental illness brings he will know that he is of inestimable worth.
-Steve Brubaker, Residential Ministries
[1] Not his real name.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment