a) I saw God and the sacred within my hospital setting whenever I did a cold visit (without a request) with a patient. There usually ended up being a true connection between the patient and myself. The first one that comes to mind is when I went into a patient’s room and he was there with a bandage around his head watching television. I was on the neurological unit and I was not sure how coherent he would be when I entered. He was very happy I came to visit him. He was very slow in speech because he had an aneurism that burst in his head and putting thoughts together and verbalizing them was a challenge. I was very patient and did not force words and I did not say things for him, but I …show more content…
I walked into this woman’s room after trying numerous times before and each of those times she was either asleep or out having tests done. This time she greeted me with a hesitancy. She made a comment that she already had spoken with another clergy person and that she did not need to have me visit. I ended up asking her about how she felt and that ended up leading to her opening-up with me about her family and what she enjoys in life with her husband. The God or sacred moment was when I found out that she was Native American and so was her husband. He was a religious leader up in New York state where they lived. The reason this turned out to be a God moment was that I have a passion for Native American heritage. I went on my Cross-Cultural trip to get to know the Native American communities within the New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Washington, DC areas. I also have had many interactions through the Greater New Jersey’s Annual Conference. It seems wherever I go God puts me in the path of someone who is Native American and can share his/her story with me. I have a deep regret for what my forefathers had and many are still doing to many Native Americans. The thing that ended up being precious with this woman was that I was given a book of ecumenical prayers when I started at the hospital and one was a Cherokee prayer that I could pray with her. She was so very grateful and because I knew that Native …show more content…
A free meal or free diapers received by someone who cannot afford to buy them but has tears in their eyes and is thanking us repeatedly. This is God at work allowing us to be God’s hands and feet in the world for God’s glory.
b) The life and work of Jesus Christ and the activity of the Holy Spirit has impacted and been challenged by the community of faith in the hospital setting through illness and pain. I have talked and prayed with faithful Christians that ask why God would do this to their loved ones. I have had a father watch his teenage son go through great pain and distress. I have watched a mother who has an adult son living with her because he is too frail to take care of himself due to