Pastoral Support

Healing and Anointing Services

The Minister of Pastoral Care schedules, plans, and leads regular Healing and Anointing Services for interested members of the congregation. These services are typically held immediately after the Sunday worship services, twice per month (in both the chapel and the sanctuary.) Notification that these special services will occur is made through the Communiqué, the church email, and during worship announcement times.

Grief Support

A grief group entitled “The Caring and Sharing Grief Support Group” meets weekly at Community Church to provide a safe and supportive atmosphere in which those who mourn a recent loss of a loved one may gather. This group is lay lead, but receives oversight and periodic training and review by the Pastoral Care Minister.

When a death occurs in the congregation, the Pastoral Care Coordinator notifies the family members of this group and extends an invitation for them to attend a meeting.

Resources, various booklets, Care notes, and other printed materials, as well as several token gifts, are available from the Pastoral Care Coordinator for distribution to those who may benefit from these items.

Care Notes (located in the Sanctuary Narthex)

“When a Loved One’s Care Decisions Are in Your Hands”
“Dealing with the Anxiety of a Hospital Stay”
“The Healing Power of Human Touch”
“In Sickness and in Health” – When Your Spouse Is Ill
“Comforting Thoughts When Life Feels All Too Lonely” 
“Ten Big Questions that Serious Illness Brings”
”An Aging Person’s Bill of Rights”
“Chronic Anger – Four Ways to Cope”
“Cherishing Your Memories of a Loved One”
“Facing the Holidays When a Family Member Is Seriously Ill”
“Dealing with the Guilt After a Difficult Care Decision”
“Dealing With the Anger That Comes with Grief”
“Facing Chronic Illness with Faith and Hope”
“Facing Cancer as a Family”
“Finding Strength to Survive a Crisis or Tragedy”
“Four Things Your Aging Parent Needs Most”
“Celebrating the Holidays Despite Being in a Healthcare Facility”
“Your First Christmas After a Loved One Dies”
“Easing the Burden of Stress”
“Caring for Yourself When You’re Caring for Someone Ill”
”Getting Through the Holidays When You’ve Lost a Loved One”
“Six Myths About Funerals and Funeral Homes”
“Grieving at Christmas: A Family Guide”
“Losing Your Dad”
“Using Hospice Care When a Loved One Is Terminally Ill” 
“What Everyone Should Know About Dementia” 
“Grieving in Your Own Way”
"When an Aging Loved One Resists Care” 
“Why Prayer Is Good Medicine”
“Dealing With Diabetes”
“When a Loved One Wishes to Die at Home”
“Keeping Up Your Spirits While in the Hospital”
“My Funeral Wish List”
"Grieving at Christmas: A Family Guide”
“Where to Find Hope in the Face of Loss” 
“Wondering What’s Best for an Aging Parent”
“When Someone You Love is Suffering”
“Living With a Problem You Can’t Solve” 
“Successfully Dealing With the Risks of Being Overweight”
“Ten Gifts to Give Yourself While Grieving” 
“What Does My Future Hold – Now That My Spouse Has Died?”
"The Ten Biggest Myths About Grief”
“Be Gentle With Yourself While Grieving”

Prayers

Prayer of Christ’s Presence
Christ with me, Christ before me,
Christ behind me, Christ below me,
Christ within me, Christ at my right hand,
Christ at my left hand, Christ in every ear that hears me,
Christ in every mouth that speaks of me,
Christ in every heart that thinks of me. Amen.

Serenity Prayer by Reinhold Niebuhr
God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
the courage to change the things I can;
and the wisdom to know the difference;
living one day at a time; accepting hardship as the pathway to peace;
taking as Christ did, this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it;
trusting that He will make all things right if I surrender to His will;
that I may be reasonably happy in this life,
and supremely happy with Him forever in the next. Amen. 

The Shepherd’s Psalm ~ Psalm 23
The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside still waters;
he restores my soul. He leads me in right paths for his name's sake.
Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil;
for you are with me; your rod and your staff - they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD my whole life long.

Crossings by Lee Webber
I came to the swift, raging river, And the roar held the echo of fear;
“Oh Lord, give me wings to fly over, If You are, as You promised, quite near.”
But He said, “Trust the grace I am giving, All-pervasive, sufficient for you.
Take my hand, we will face this together; But My plan is – not over, but through.”

Booklets

These materials are available for distribution during visits made by clergy and lay visitors to members and friends of the church. They are also available for distribution to those who come to the church in need of information, comfort, or direction. The Pastoral Care Coordinator will oversee the stocking of these items and notify appropriate parties for replenishment, or additions, as necessary.

“Water Bugs & Dragonflies” – Explaining death to young children
“So We’re Growing Older” – Reflections for Mature Adults
“Holding On…While Letting Go” – Reflections in times of grave illness 
“Life With Your Parents” - Encouraging words for the Adolescent 
“Looking Up…While Lying Down” thoughts, poems and prayers for those in the hospital 
“My Loved One Is Dying”
“Gathering Memories”- In honor of one who has died 
“Mourning after Suicide” 
“In Prison You Came to Me” 
“Remarriage and Blended Families” 
“How to Succeed in Marriage” 
“When Death Has Touched Your Life” – thoughts, poems, and prayers at a time of loss.