Faithful volunteers revive Jesus Cares Ministries program
After years of faithful participation, the Jesus Cares Ministries (JCM) program at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church in Bemidji, Minn., was struggling. Attendance had dwindled for the ministry, which reaches out to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, their families and the community.
Volunteers prayed for guidance in solving the problem. The goal was not just to bring back those who had stopped coming but to reach out to everyone in the community who would benefit from special needs ministry.
Local JCM director Belinda Baumann teamed with volunteer Millie Dickson and St. Mark’s Pastor Aaron Nitz (pictured) to craft a plan involving local media, personal visits, fliers and phone calls. The trio also planned an event with a meal and a full Bible class.
The DAC, where most of the JCM participants work, sent the event information to all its employees, and a member of St. Mark’s submitted it to the Faith page of the local paper. Belinda and Millie made more than a dozen personal visits to group homes, inviting residents to the upcoming JCM event and sharing general information about Jesus Cares.
At Lighthouse Lodge, Millie and Belinda met the director, who urged all four Lighthouse homes bring participants to St. Mark’s big JCM event, which they did.
“Finding the right person to talk to at each group home company was key. The activities or program director is generally the best person,” said Julie Luetke, JCM Consultant with The Lutheran Home Association. JCM consultants can help individual programs identify the group homes and contacts in their area.
“God blessed every visit,” Millie said.
They were amazed and blessed with 50 attendees, 18 from Lighthouse Lodge alone. People did not just come to one event for a free meal. At the next JCM Bible class, 23 new participants heard the Bible story.
“All glory goes to God,” Belinda said. “I encourage other JCM programs to not give up. Pray, asking the Lord to bless your Jesus Cares. Even some of the faithful JCM participants prayed.”
The Bemidji JCM now has a much larger group of participants.
“What an awesome joy it is to share the love of God in Jesus with so many blood-bought souls. It’s such a joy to see their joy and energy and child-like trust in Jesus. Their simple confessions of faith are incredible gospel witnesses to me, to the helpers, to their peers, and to the staff that bring them,” Pastor Neitz said. “You could really tell that they enjoyed being here and to many, though they aren’t our members, St. Mark’s is ‘their church.’”
The JCM team is available as a resource for new and existing programs. We offer volunteer workshops to provide opportunities to increase your knowledge about this outreach ministry, share your experiences and learn from others.
Get involved! Find resources for your JCM program.