Please Pray For This Family

They have a lot to do. They were at our church Sunday night. If you’ll look at their calendar on the website, you’ll see that they stay busy.

Take a look at their Mission Statement, too.  It starts out much as mine does, with our belief as to the truth shown by the Bible. It is God’s message, my guide for living God’s will. That’s the message they carry to nursing homes across America.

How many nursing homes have you entered? Why? I’ve been to visit relatives, friends and just to sing along with a group. I’ve carried in flowers, cards and I’ve gone empty handed, but never with an empty heart. The Hinkle Family goes with gospel sounds and words to uplift residents.

Visit them on Facebook, too. You can travel virtually with them as they make their way from one city to another, visiting those whose lives have become limited to a small area, often with few visitors.

According to the Centers for Disease Control’s 2004 figures (the latest they display) there are 16,100 nursing homes in the United States with 1.7 million beds and an average occupancy of 86%. The average stay is 835 days. There were 936,000 workers in these homes.

Can you imagine living in one room for 365 days, much less for more than twice that much? How long does it take us to reach ‘cabin fever’ stage during a winter ice storm. Two winters ago, we were iced in for five days. That was more than sufficient – we wanted to go, anywhere. For the most part, they can’t.

Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world. (James 1:27 KJV)

The Hinkles do visit the widows – and residents would fall under the fatherless category, too, but they do more.  They have three goals:

1. To encourage the saints and lead those who are lost to a saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. 
2. To take young people on the road and expose them to a ministry caring about the Elderly.
3. To encourage churches to get involved in caring about these Senior Saints. Through Bible Studies, Music, etc.

I will admit that I fall into that ‘Elderly’ category and it sounds very good to me that there people who will come to visit me, sing to me and bring comfort through God’s word and His message. Doesn’t that sound like something good for all?

We can help them. We can join in prayer. We don’t need to pray for their specific needs – we have help through one who knows exactly what the Hinkles need:

Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. (Romans 8:26 KJV)

Come, join with them in ministering to others.