Churches have a responsibility to include all members in worship, prayer, and ministry, even if they can no longer attend services. Seniors often fall into this category, and churches need to make every effort to keep them connected even when they cannot physically attend. If your church is struggling with keeping confined seniors connected, there are a few practices you can implement.
Home Visits
There are several ways for churches to conduct home visits to keep seniors connected. First, the pastor can make regular visits. Pastors should work with their immobile and confined senior members to work out a schedule that best suits their needs and then stick to it on a regular basis. During these home visits, the pastor can lead a modified church service, pray with the senior member, and minister in ways that are most appropriate for the senior.
Church members and volunteers also should make home visits to seniors who can no longer attend services, in order to make them feel like a valued member of the church family. These volunteers can stop in to talk with seniors, pray with them, or share joys and concerns from the traditional church services. Church members and volunteers can also send cards from time to time to brighten their day and show that their church family cares for them even though they do not get to see them often.
Home visits also can serve as counseling sessions for senior shut-ins. Perhaps your church has professional Christian counselors on staff who are trained to help seniors work through personal and emotional challenges. If your church does not have Christian counselors on staff, you could enroll in the Stephen Ministry program. Stephen Ministry trains church members to provide one-to-one Christian support to seniors and other congregation members who are having difficulty with emotional, physical, or spiritual issues.
Provide Transportation
Sometimes, keeping seniors connected to church when they can no longer attend services is as simple as providing transportation for those who can no longer drive. Churches often ask for and then coordinate volunteers to transport seniors to church so they can attend services with the rest of the congregation. Itβs important to create a network of volunteer drivers so that there are back-up drivers in case someone becomes ill or is unable to provide transportation on his scheduled day.
Deliver Altar Flowers
One of the quickest ways to connect seniors to church when they can no longer attend services is to arrange for church members to deliver the altar flowers to them at the conclusion of worship services. Whether your senior members are confined to their homes or are residents in nursing homes, they will enjoy a brief visit with the church member who delivers the altar flowers to them following the traditional worship service. Church members also may deliver the church bulletin, program, and newsletter to the senior members so that they can read the Bible passages from the service at their leisure and keep up with the news of the church.
Use Technology to Connect Seniors to Church Services
Whether services are streamed in real time or recorded for seniors to watch on-demand, there are various ways to use technology to connect seniors to the church when they can no longer attend services in person. For example, churches can stream sermons directly to seniors in their homes via an online conference call service. They can even record the livestream and distribute it via email or the church website so seniors can watch at a later time.
Church members also may record services on tablets or smart phones and email the video to seniors who can no longer attend. Another option is to record church services and save them to USB flash drives, and then deliver them to seniors so they can watch on their laptops or home computers.
If seniors are unsure of how to use technology, churches can organize technology committees to visit seniors and teach them how to access the services. This is another way to connect seniors to church when they can no longer attend services; they will enjoy learning from their fellow church members and getting to know them, even though they do not attend services with them.
There are several ways to keep seniors connected to church when they can no longer attend services. Church leaders should work to determine the seniorsβ needs and then organize committees and volunteers to connect with senior congregation members who cannot attend services in person.
Marie Villeza is the creator of ElderImpact.org. She hopes the site will help seniors add more life to their years and bring young and old generations together. In her free time, she enjoys gardening, hiking, and taking part in her monthly book club.
