“Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven.” (James 5:14-15 NIV)
I was recently listening to a message and the minister in general mentioned the purpose of Hospice and of a hospital. It started me thinking where do we go to have our service. Most of us have experienced a love one or someone we knew that ended up having to be put into Hospice. Even though Hospice does provide palliative care most of their patients are end of life care from terminal illnesses. They work as a team to bring comfort to the suffering patient, also minister to them spiritually as they face end of life. A hospital on the other hand works as a team specializing in curing each patient to bring them back to the full quality of life.
When you walk into the house where you have your church service, are you walking into the hospital or hospice? Do you walk in suffering spiritually or physically but walk out feeling that you have only been comforted to press on until the end has come? Are you being comforted just to know that one day you will have no more pain or tears, but you will soon be walking through pearly gates and on streets of gold? Are you walking into a spiritual hospital where the expectation of the team is to make sure the illness you are facing is totally healed before you leave and the attacks or spiritual oppressions you have been experiencing have been totally delivered before you leave?
Just like the goal of a hospital to give the patient back their quality of life, this is the goal of Jesus for his house to give us abundant life (John 10:10). He also said, “I must work the work of Him that sent me while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work” (John 9:4), so now you need to decide if this can be accomplished in a spiritual Hospital or Hospice.
1 Comment