By guest columnist Karen Tynes
Tikkun olam “Ours is not the task of fixing the entire world all at once, but of stretching out to mend the part of the world that is within our reach. Any small, calm thing that one soul can do to help another soul, to assist some portion of this poor suffering world, will help immensely. It is not given to us to know which acts or by whom, will cause the critical mass to tip toward an enduring good. What is needed for dramatic change is an accumulation of acts, adding, adding to, adding more, continuing.” —Clarrisa Pinkole Estes
Prayer is the tie that binds us together. During the week, I get prayer requests that immediately go out to over forty members. When I was a Southern Baptist we called such folks, “prayer warriors.” At St. Ds, we call them Care Teams members.
On Wednesdays, I email the Care List with several attachments, a PDF, a Web, an Excel file and the Word document. Some folks use the PDF, others the Web, etc. The Word document is the same as the prayer list paragraph you see in the Sunday bulletin. Whatever works! The other attachments have all address, phone and email info for those on the prayer list so if you want to reach with a card or call or visit, you have what you need.
Prayer requests come through email or phone calls. On Mondays, I prepare a draft form of the prayer list and send it to clergy and staff who review it and contribute corrections/additions, etc. The prayer requests I get during the week, go on the list for the Wednesday email.
Paula Ross is head of the Care Teams and I am the Admin, who does the computer work. If you would like to join the Care Teams and get the prayer list, talk to us or email Karen Tynes.