Every good pastor and church will find themselves frequently visiting people in the hospital. At my church, we visit people who are in the hospital or shut-in every single day. Every church sets up their visitation ministry a bit differently. I explain how we set church’s visitation ministry here: How to Organize a Church Visitation Ministry. But, what do those individual visits look like? I recently gave our staff some best practices:
- Pray before you arrive. You are representing Jesus, ask how He wants to use you.
- Sanitize your hands. Observe signs regarding masks and other contact precautions when entering a room. If you have been sick talk with the XP about whether you should actually visit.
- Turn off your cell phone or set it to silent.
- Have a plan. Know what verses you are going to read. Always have anointing oil. When visiting shut-ins always take communion.
- Introduce yourself. If you don’t know the person, be sure to identify yourself and the fact you are from Calvary. If the door is shut when you arrive, knock before entering.
- Complete the visit, but don’t obstruct the flow. Let the hospital staff do their job, at the same time make sure you do yours, even if you have to be assertive.
- Keep it short. Being a patient can be exhausting. Keep your hospital visits to about 10-15 minutes. For shut-ins, a lot depends on the situation, but 30 minutes is a good rule of thumb.
- Don’t rush out the door, or even seem rushed. Take the time to sit down, always in a chair and never on the bed. Take your coat off and don’t make it seem like you are stopping by just to do a job. If you sense you should stay, then stay. Even if that means you are sitting quietly with the person, not even talking.
- Be sensitive, but not timid. Ask questions about what is going on in their life, but if you sense they are being private don’t press.
- Pray. Always pray for the person you are visiting. Ask permission, but always offer to anoint with oil.
- Remember the family. They often require pastoral care too. A great practice is to call the family after visiting with their loved one.
- Send your report. You should email a report of your visits to *******@*********.***.Â
Better than the average post on this subject by some distance, and a look at moonharborcommercegallery reinforced that, you can tell within the first paragraph that the writer here actually cares about the topic rather than just covering it for the sake of having something to publish that week or that day.
Really liked the calm tone running through the post, no shouting and no urgency forced into the writing, and a look at crecall kept that quiet confidence going, the kind of voice that makes the reader feel respected rather than yelled at which is depressingly common across most modern blog content these days.
Reading this gave me confidence to make a decision I had been putting off, and a stop at elmwoodcommercegallery reinforced that confidence, content that translates into action in my own life rather than just informing it is content with the highest practical value and this site is generating that action level utility for me lately.
Reading this on a long flight and finding it the best thing I read across hours of trying, and a stop at timbertrailmerchantgallery kept the streak going, when content beats long flight reading you know it has substance because flight reading is a hard test of a piece given the alternatives available everywhere.
Thanks for the practical examples scattered through the post rather than abstract theory only, and a look at woodcovemerchantgallery continued that grounded style, abstract points are easier to remember when paired with concrete situations and the writers here clearly understand how readers actually retain information from blog content reading sessions.
Now realising the post has been quietly doing important work in my mind for the past hour, and a stop at daisyharborcommercegallery extended that quiet processing, content that continues to do work after I close the tab is content with afterlife in the mind and this site is producing those long lived effects at a meaningful rate.
Now wishing I had found this site sooner, and a look at hoxfix extended that mild regret, the calculation of how many years of good content I missed by not finding the right sources earlier is one I try not to make too often but it does come up sometimes when I find sites this good.
Thanks for not padding this with the usual filler intros and outros that every other blog seems to require, and a quick visit to hiltgable continued that lean approach across more posts, content stripped of waste is content that respects you and I will always come back to that kind of approach.
Reading this with my morning coffee turned into reading the related posts with my morning coffee, and a stop at skiffvantage stretched the morning further, content that pulls breakfast into a reading session rather than just accompanying it is content that has earned a higher claim on my attention than the average article does.
Sets a higher bar than most of what shows up in search results for this topic, and a look at solacevelour did not lower that bar at all, in fact it confirmed the impression, this is the kind of consistency that earns a place in regular rotation for serious readers instead of casual scrollers passing through.
Thanks for a post that does not try to be funny when it is not the moment for it, and a stop at timbertrailmerchantgallery maintained the same appropriate seriousness, knowing when humour helps and when it just signals desperation for engagement is a sign of editorial maturity that many blogs have not developed yet.
Speaking as someone who used to recommend blogs frequently and got out of the habit this site is rekindling that impulse, and a look at shorevolume extended the rekindling, the recovery of an old habit triggered by encountering work that justifies it is itself a small kind of pleasure and this site is providing that recovery experience.
Now appreciating the way the post avoided the temptation to be longer than necessary, and a look at waveharbormerchantgallery continued that lean approach, content with the discipline to stop when finished rather than padding for length is content that respects both itself and its readers and this site has that disciplined editorial culture clearly throughout.
Compared to the usual results for this kind of search this site stands well above the average, and a quick visit to embermeadowmerchantgallery kept the standard high, you can tell within seconds whether a site is going to waste your time or actually deliver and this one clearly delivers without any false starts.
Reading this on a long flight and finding it the best thing I read across hours of trying, and a stop at glyjay kept the streak going, when content beats long flight reading you know it has substance because flight reading is a hard test of a piece given the alternatives available everywhere.
Looking for similar voices elsewhere has come up empty in my recent searches, and a stop at daisyharborcommercegallery extended the search frustration, the rare site that does what no other does in quite the same way is precious and this one has clearly developed a particular approach that I have not been able to find duplicates of.
Picked a single sentence from this post to remember, and a look at trumpetsixth gave me another to keep, content that produces memorable lines is doing more than just transferring information and the small selection of sentences I keep from each reading session is one of the actual returns I get from reading carefully.
Now leaving a small mental note to recommend this when the topic comes up in conversation, and a look at fiabush extended that recommend ready feeling, content that arms me with shareable references for likely future conversations is content with social value and this site is providing that conversational ammunition consistently for me lately.
Came in skeptical and left mostly convinced, that is the highest praise I can offer, and a look at mossharborcommercegallery pushed me further in the same direction, content that survives a critical first read is rare and worth recognising because most blog posts crumble under any real scrutiny these days when you actually pay attention closely.
Comfortable in tone and substantive in content, that is a hard combination to land, and a look at vinylvessel kept that pairing alive across more material, this is what good editorial direction looks like in practice and the team here clearly has someone keeping a steady hand on the wheel across what they decide to publish.
Thanks for putting this online without locking it behind email signups or paywalls, and a quick visit to hoxhem kept that open feel going, content that trusts the reader to come back rather than gating access is the kind of approach I will reward with regular return visits over time happily.
Over the course of reading several posts here a pattern of quality has emerged, and a stop at tweedvolume confirmed the pattern, the difference between sites that hit quality occasionally and sites that hit it consistently is huge and this site has clearly demonstrated the consistent kind through what I have read this morning.
Excellent post, balanced and well organised without showing off, and a stop at hiltgem continued in that same vein, this site has clearly figured out the formula for content that works for readers rather than for search engine ranking signals which is harder than it sounds today and worth real recognition from anyone.
Closed my email tab so I could read this without interruption, and a stop at timbertrailmerchantgallery earned the same protected attention, when content is good enough to defend against the usual digital distractions you know it deserves better than the half attention most online reading gets in a typical busy day.
Liked that the post resisted a sales pitch ending, and a stop at solacevelour maintained the no pitch approach, content that ends without trying to convert me into a customer or subscriber is content that has confidence in its own value and this site is clearly playing the long game on reader trust.
A piece that exhibited the kind of patience that good writing requires, and a look at frostridgemerchantgallery continued that patient quality, hurried writing is easy to spot and this site reads as having been written without time pressure which produces a different feel than the rushed content that dominates much of the modern blog space.
Walked away in a slightly better mood than when I started reading, that says something about the writing, and a stop at shorevolume kept that going, content that leaves you feeling more capable rather than overwhelmed is the kind I keep coming back to again and again over the years and across many topics.
At this time it seems like WordPress is the preferred blogging platform available right now. (from what I’ve read) Is that what you are using on your blog?
A piece that did not waste any of its substance on sales or promotion, and a look at glyjay continued that pure content focus, sites that resist the urge to monetise every paragraph are increasingly rare and this one has clearly made the editorial choice to keep the writing clean from commercial intrusion which I value highly.
Looking at the surface design and the substance together this site has both right, and a look at waveharbormerchantgallery reinforced that integrated quality, sites where presentation and content reinforce each other rather than fighting are sites with full editorial coherence and this one has clearly invested in both layers in a balanced way.
Reading this on a phone at a coffee shop and finding it perfectly suited to that context, and a stop at nyxsip continued the comfortable mobile experience, content that works across reading conditions without compromising on substance is increasingly important and this site has clearly thought about the whole reader experience here.
During my morning reading slot this fit perfectly into the routine, and a look at fribrag extended that perfect fit into the rest of the routine, content that matches the rhythm of how I actually read rather than demanding accommodation from my schedule is content well calibrated to its likely audience and this site has it.
If I were grading sites on this topic this one would receive high marks, and a stop at sweatertorso continued earning those high marks, the informal grading I do mentally for content sources is something I take seriously even though it is informal and this site has been receiving consistent high marks across multiple sessions today.
Worth flagging this site to a few specific friends who would appreciate the editorial sensibility, and a look at nightfallcommercegallery added more pages I will mention to them, recommending sites to specific people requires understanding both the site and the person and this site is making those personalised recommendations easy and natural for me.
Such writing is increasingly rare and worth supporting through attention, and a stop at vesseltame extended that supportive attention across more pages, the conscious choice to spend time on sites that produce careful work rather than convenient consumption is itself a small form of patronage and this site is receiving that conscious patronage from me.
Reading this confirmed a small detail I had been uncertain about, and a stop at vinylvessel provided the source for further checking, content that supports verification through citations or links rather than just asserting facts is more trustworthy and this site has clearly built its credibility through that kind of verifiable approach consistently.
A piece that read smoothly because the writer understood how readers actually move through prose, and a look at hubbeat maintained the same reader awareness, writers who think about the reading experience as much as the writing experience produce better work and this site has clearly made that shift in editorial approach.
Felt like the writer was speaking directly to someone with my level of curiosity, neither talking down nor showing off, and a stop at garnetharborcommercegallery kept that comfortable matching going, finding writing that meets you where you are rather than asking you to climb up or stoop down feels great every time it happens.
Time spent here today felt productive in the way that good reading sessions sometimes do, and a stop at violetharbormerchantgallery extended that productive feeling across the rest of the morning, the difference between productive reading and merely passing time is real and this site is consistently on the productive side for me lately.
Reading this prompted a brief but useful conversation with a colleague who happened to walk by, and a stop at thatchvista extended that conversational seed, content that becomes a starting point for in person discussion rather than ending in solitary reading is content with social generative energy and this site has plenty of it apparently.
Looking forward to seeing what gets published next month, and a look at hilthive extended that anticipation across the broader site, finding myself looking forward to a sites future content rather than just consuming its existing content is a stronger commitment level than I usually reach with new finds and this site triggered that.
Solid value packed into a relatively short post, that takes skill, and a look at siskastencil continues the dense useful content across more pages, this site clearly understands that respecting reader time is itself a form of generosity which is something most blog operations seem to have forgotten lately across the wider open web.
Now feeling confident enough in this site to use it as a reference point for evaluating others on the same topic, and a look at violetharborcommercegallery continued the comparison friendly quality, sites that serve as quality benchmarks for their topic are precious and this one has clearly become a benchmark for me on this particular subject area.
Took my time with this rather than rushing because the writing rewards attention, and after woodcovemerchantgallery I had even more to absorb, the kind of content that pays back the patient reader rather than punishing them with empty filler is something I look for and rarely find in regular searches lately.
Most of the time I bounce off similar pages within seconds, and a stop at fylcalm held me longer than I would have predicted, the ability to convert a likely bouncing visitor into an engaged reader is a quality signal and this site has demonstrated that conversion ability across multiple visits where I expected to bounce.
Now planning to write about the topic myself eventually using this post as a reference, and a look at oliveharborcommercegallery would also serve in that future piece, content that becomes raw material for my own writing rather than just informing my reading is content with multiplicative value and this site is generating that multiplicative effect.
Wow that was strange. I just wrote an extremely long comment but after I clicked submit my comment didn’t appear. Grrrr… well I’m not writing all that over again. Anyhow, just wanted to say great blog!
Worth pointing out that the writer made the topic feel more interesting than I had been expecting, and a look at studiotrader continued that elevation effect, content that improves the apparent quality of its subject through skilled treatment is doing something real and this site has clearly developed that kind of editorial alchemy throughout.
A piece that respected the reader by not over explaining the obvious, and a look at garnetharbormerchantgallery continued that calibrated approach, finding the right level of explanation is one of the harder editorial calls and this site has clearly thought carefully about what readers will already know versus what they need help with consistently.
Now understanding why someone recommended this site to me a while back, and a stop at singersorbet explained the recommendation, sometimes recommendations make sense only after experience and this site has finally clicked into place as the kind of resource I now understand was being recommended for sound editorial reasons by my friend.