The DNA Update for United Methodists - July 2015 with Dr. Don Nations for Wednesday, 1 July 2015

The DNA Update for United Methodists - July 2015 with Dr. Don Nations for Wednesday, 1 July 2015

The DNA Update for United Methodists with Dr. Don Nations - July 2015

In This Issue:

• Ministering in Senior Facilities
• How Is Your Organization?

Ministering in Senior Facilities
The number of seniors living in some sort of facility – retirement community, assisted living, skilled nursing, dementia unit, etc. – is growing and will continue to grow for many years to come. A desire to reach “new, younger and different” is not in conflict with also reaching out to people in these various living situations.
Here are a few things which can make your efforts more effective:

• Make the format and content appropriate for the audience. Some residents will be fine with a one hour service and five point sermon. Neither of these would be appropriate for people in a dementia unit or who are impacted by TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury). Remember the age of the residents when you select songs and illustrations.
• Be sure to connect with the staff and any family members who are present. While the residents may typically be 65-100 years old, the typical CNA, HHA, LPN, RN, etc. may be 10-45 years younger. As they see that you genuinely care about their residents and them, they may become more open to connecting with the church outside of their staff role in the facility.
• Use these settings to give more people experience in hands-on ministry. You need to present a quality program/service but it is a great place to use new people to read scripture, lead a song, play an instrument, greet people or deliver a brief message. It is also a good setting to help people become more comfortable with expressing Christian caregiving and the ministry of presence.
• Be consistent and keep your word. If you make a commitment then fulfill it. Your presence is an event looked forward to by both residents and staff. Making this a priority speaks loudly to people about the character of your church. If this is going to be a ministry of the church then make it good and be reliable. 

How Is Your Organization?
I have heard and seen the following things over the last couple of weeks:
A bulletin cover highlighting the special Sunday and not a word said about it during the service

• A staff person telling me that they had to cancel the activities in their program area for a week because the church rented out the facility to the Scouts and did not tell them
• A staff person saying “I am always the last one to know what is going on around here; my supervisor does not keep me informed”
• Church events cancelled at the last minute because one of the leaders could not be present even though there were other leaders availableI understand that life happens and there may be an occasional glitch in church programming. In many churches, however, it is not a rare occurrence but a regular happening. It becomes a habit and “just the way things work around here”. Some may even talk about how wonderful it is that people are flexible and everything does not have to be scheduled.

Let me suggest that people who are new to the church likely do not find this to be an attractive quality. They are already trying to figure out who does what and when various events happen. Adding to their confusion is not helpful. An event announced and then canceled can feel like a broken promise. A staff person talking about the poor communication among staff can undermine the confidence of people in leadership. Prioritizing rental income over church programming can make the church look desperate.
How is the organization in your church? Does the communication system work well or does it break down often? Is the work of the church directed by an overarching mission and vision or does each area do its own thing? Are certain specific outcomes expected and inspected or is leadership laid back or mostly non-existent? Great organization in and of itself may not make a church effective but effective churches tend to have good organization.
Would you like some assistance in determining the level of organization in your church and or improving it? Contact us today to get started – don@dnacoaching.com
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