I am blessed to be at Bridgeway Community Church as Director of Care. Working with the best support staff, world-class clergy members, and fantastic volunteer leaders is a privilege. After many years in ministry, I am in the right place at the right time with the right people. In his book, Robert Clinton discusses the concept of convergence in leadership: “God moves a leader into a role that matches giftedness, experience, temperament, spiritual maturity, destiny, and geographical location.” I know I have a long way to go, but I am glad I am in my season of life. I am genuinely thankful to God.

Lately, however, I feel somewhat discouraged and tired after the holiday season. Perhaps I have been to one too many hospital visits and funerals. Self-doubt creeps in. Am I helping others? I keep reminding myself, “Don’t let your emotion get the better of you; do your job steadily. It’s not about you.” But the feeling gets tangled, and the mundaneness of my work brings me down like a bad cold. 

Although caregiving is hard work, the Care Ministry at Bridgeway is flourishing. Our training reminds us to be people of empathy. And according to psychologist Carl Rogers, empathy is “feeling another person’s problems as if they were your own without actually taking them on yourself.” We try to live by that teaching, but it is more complex than that. What is needed is the constant reminder that we are not “cure-givers” but caregivers. We are here to listen, love, and give encouragement to those who are struggling and hurting. The healing comes from God. He is the ultimate cure-giver. We represent Christ’s presence amid the storm of a person’s life.

As we start a new year, we want to see Bridgeway as a beautiful place of healing and restoration. We want Bridgeway to be a place of “extending positive favor to other people [broken, hurting, and struggling] regardless of, and sometimes because of, their color, class, or culture.” (from Gracism) What would that look like?  

Isaiah 49:14-15 says, “But Zion (the people of God) said, ‘The Lord has forsaken me, the Lord has forgotten me.’ Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you!” (NIV)

I can dream of three wishes: first, Bridgeway can be a place of “you-are-not-alone” community. You thought you were the only one going through cancer, broken relationships, addiction, family issues, financial problems, etc. No, you are not alone. Many of us have been there. We know about shame, guilt, and suffering. We are all broken and hurting in some way because we live in a fallen world. Bad things happen to good people. You are not going to be alone. We will find the way together. 

We also wish Bridgeway would be a place in the “I-will-share-with-you” community. When bad things happen, our sense of fear and anxiety paralyzes us. Too often, we need help figuring out what to do. To someone who says, “I have cancer…Now what?” we will share our resources, stories, knowledge, experience, and Christian care. We don’t have all the answers, but we will figure it out together.

Lastly, Bridgeway is becoming a place of the “You-can-make-it” community. We will be your biggest fan. We will cheer you on and stay with you until you are well again no matter what you bring to the table. We will be on your side. 

So, in short, three words will define the 2023 Care Ministry goals: Community, Resources, and Encouragement (CaRE). This is the promise of God: He will remember you. He will come for you. He will find you. And He will HEAL you. Because He cares for you.

To learn more about how the Care Ministry can be a community for you where you can find resources and encouragement, please visit here.

If you need help or support, please contact Care.
If you are looking for activities where you can meet others, check out our Events.
If you are looking for people to do life with, connect with our Groups.