Deacons provide multiple days of care
The ministry of a deacon as defined in the P.C. (USA) Book of Order is, “One of compassion, witness, and service; sharing in the redeeming love of Jesus Christ.” With so many changes and challenges in the year 2020, we knew this still had to be our mission. The annual Deacon Day of Care is normally a one-day project where we send out teams to serve Church members around Tulsa by cleaning up their yards and fixing things around their homes.
The event originally scheduled for May was postponed but finding a way to help others was still important. Every Saturday of August and one weekend in October we extended our Day of Care into multiple weeks. Members of the Board of Deacons, their families and other Church volunteers joined in to complete outside jobs for 11 congregation members. Bob Farris, a faithful deacon volunteer said, “The first house we worked on was Linda Hunter’s home. While she couldn’t come outside due to her health problems, her son, Bob, said he told her what we had done, and she was so grateful. Linda died a few weeks later and hopefully our efforts gave her a little peace of mind about something I know had been on her mind.”
Many of the people involved in the days of care were those who did not feel comfortable participating in Sunday worship or other Church events during the pandemic. There were reunions, great times of fellowship and laughter, sharing of joys and concerns and prayers for each other and the members we were serving. “It was very meaningful to see and visit people in person. Despite the social distancing and masks, it was easy to feel the love and the Lord’s presence. It was a great thing and something we will continue in 2021,” says Joe Land, co-moderator of Deacons 2021. We look forward to having full months of Deacon Days of Care in both the spring and fall.
John 13:14 says, “Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet.” As called and ordained deacons to ministries of care and compassion, we hope to continue to serve others in creative ways in 2021. Please let Elizabeth DeVore, eldevore7@gmail.com; or Joe Land, dogfaceboy@aol.com; know if you or someone you know is in need.