God’s Word bridges the technology gap at group homes
During the pandemic, the Jesus Cares Ministries (JCM) program at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church in Bemidji, Minn., continued its outreach to share God’s message of love with people with special needs, ultimately reaching more people!
“We did not shut down at all; we just tried to find new ways of going forward and meeting the needs of the participants,” explained Jill Kirk, co-leader of the Jesus Cares Ministries program.
Early in the pandemic, Jill reached out to local group homes to host small outdoor Bible studies onsite. During the summer months, she visited approximately seven group homes. When the weather turned colder and no guests were welcome inside of the group homes, Jill mailed care packages to each group home. In December, the care packages included the Worship at the Cross Christmas DVD.
“That was really well received,” Jill said. “At one of our homes, the three residents have limited verbal skills. The staff shared that they cannot express that they would like to watch a YouTube video or something online that is not really in their reach. But they pick up the DVD and hand it to the staff, requesting to watch it. They will sit together watching it. They just love it; they love the music, and they love worshiping God in that way.”
Throughout the past year and into 2021, the Bemidji JCM program continues to thrive and includes more than 40 participants, many of whom are from the local group homes with which Jill connected.
Although JCM has on-demand Worship at the Cross services available, many group homes lack the technology to access the internet. This gap was highlighted more as everyone was experiencing limitations with no in-person gatherings. This led the national JCM office to help to bridge the gap between the local programs and the local group homes.
“Hearing this feedback inspired us to make the DVDs of the Worship at the Cross services. Ultimately, our goal is to share God’s Word with as many individuals as possible, and we will continue to do our best to make that happen,” explained Pastor Gaertner.
Pastor Gaertner, along with Pastor Patrick Feldhus, plan to distribute more Worship at the Cross DVDs to JCM programs. To request a copy, email jcm@tlha.org. On-demand Worship at the Cross services are available to watch anytime at myjesuscares.com.