Called to a Future with Hope
Volume 17, Number 1 Winter 2000

Article Summaries

Editorial-A Future with Hope by Judith Allen Shelly
Nursing is a special calling, as is the Christian life. We can love our jobs in the midst of chaos because we have a sense of mission and vision of what might be. We allow God to use us as instruments of change. We are called to give compassionate, competent care and to share Christ with clients, their families and our colleagues.

Captivated by God's Call: Discovering the Joy by Nancy Ortberg
Can people not in full-time Christian ministry have a calling and not just a job? Ortberg says yes. A calling is unique to each individual; will fit our abilities and talents; will give us joy and a renewed sense of energy; and must be pursued with all our hearts. As we remind each other that we have a calling, we become a community that draws people to Jesus. When you have a calling, you "feel the pleasure of God."

Called to Be Consistently Christian: Verna Carson's Personal Story by Verna Carson
Carson describes her close relationship with the Lord as a child, falling away in young adulthood, how she once again allowed Jesus to reign in her life and what a difference that made in her family and as a nursing professor in a secular institution.

Paradox by Kim Marie Falk
This is a short but powerful poem that calls us to put disappointments in perspective, considering God's big picture of life's events.

Nita Barrow, RN: Called to Lead a Country by Marilyne Gustafson
This nurse, who entered nursing school in Barbados in 1935, developed into a leader in the profession in the Caribbean and went on to have influence as a high government official in Jamaica and beyond.

Flight Nursing: A Touch of Hope by Jann Churchill
Churchill's experiences with clients involved in critical situations reinforce her conviction that although high-tech, lifesaving nursing skills are vital in helicopter rescue and emergency care, clients long for a touch, a prayer, a word of hope.

Family Crisis: Lessons from the Other Side of the Bed
by Amy M. Wile-Curtis
A critical care nurse walks with her family through her father's heart attack, honestly sharing her feelings of helplessness and what she learned by being "family" instead of "caregiver" in control.

Parish Nursing: A Call to Integrity by Sybil D. Smith
Has parish nursing been reduced to secular nursing in a church setting? Smith sees dangers in the de-emphasis of the mission/ministry model of parish nursing, and the rise of the marketplace and access models. She challenges the church to "take back" parish nursing.

Response: Pragmatic Partnership by Barbara J. White
White sees the cooperation between churches and secular organizations as a financially advantageous development to mobilize resources for the good of the congregations. It can produce a dynamic and innovative model. God is big enough to use any combination of models to meet the needs of the underserved.

Response: Collaborating for Mission by Renae Schumann
While acknowledging Smith's concerns in describing parish nursing as "confusing" as valid, Schumann sees a combination of models working to meet the holistic health needs of people in churches. She advocates meeting those needs within the congregation whenever possible, but also tapping into resources from the hospital to provide other personnel or services.

Response: Parish Nursing Is Ministry by Loronda Schuler
Schuler differentiates between public health nurses who come in and do education and the parish nurse who educates, counsels and prays with the congregation members-a ministry, not just a nurse in a church. Personally working in the mission/ministry model, Schuler describes the various aspects of her work as a parish nurse.

Bearing Another's Burden: Five Keys to Therapeutic Listening
by Dawn M. Scheick
This Christian nurse therapist works in a secular behavioral health clinic in Appalachia and says all nurses need to be therapeutic listeners, open to counseling moments with clients. She describes approaches such as: help the client meet basic needs; be available; accept clients where they are; maintain professional boundaries but know how to let them be permeable; and manage stress to prevent vicarious traumatization.

Research: Spiritual Wellness in Older Women by Margie Maddox
Maddox's study reinforced other research that found spirituality to be important in achieving a sense of wellness and wholeness among the older population. The women interviewed particularly mentioned the value of attending church, corporate prayer, Christian friendships and support, reminiscing about past experiences and personal visits by pastor and parish nurse that included touching, prayer and Bible reading. Nurses in all settings can incorporate holistic care to meet spiritual needs of clients.

Beyond Band-Aids: Empowering a Honduran Community to Care
by Nancy Crigger & Lygia Holcomb
A Florida short-term mission team soon becomes discouraged with a Band-Aid approach to health care in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, when the needs were so great. Instead, they decided to invest themselves long-term to assist a congregation already involved in a clinic and outreach ministry with the underserved in their area by developing curriculum, training national health promoters and assisting with medicines and supplies.

Male Nurse in a Female Field: Becoming Colleagues by Donald L. Haines
Haines reviews his 44-year career in nursing, sharing experiences that illustrate the changes he's seen in acceptance of men in the field.

I'll Do My Part by Jewell Johnson
Are you timid and afraid when it comes to initiating prayer with a patient, even though you feel the timing is right? Walk with this shy, hesitant nurse as she seeks God's strength, then offers to pray with a discouraged hypertensive patient.

Return to the Winter 2000 Issue

Return to the Journal of Christian Nursing