Ordained Irreverence by McMillian Moody

Author:McMillian Moody
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: romance, comedy, humor, church, seminary, intern, mitford, holden caulfield, church staff
Publisher: McMillian Moody

The Hospital Visit

Monday, Monday, Monday, it’s already Monday again. Church work is basically a six-day work week. You work Monday through Friday like everybody else, but then you also work Sunday. Yet it’s generally accepted that Sunday doesn’t count as a work day, based on the theory that even if you didn’t work at the church, you’d be there anyway. Forgotten in this assumption is the fact that Sundays are easily the most demanding day of the work week for those in ministry, often lasting from seven in the morning until nine at night. Our High Attendance Sunday had been one of those long, grueling Sundays, so Tom Applebee told the entire staff to take Monday morning off. I knew I liked him.

Swinging by the church at noon, I picked up my hospital visitation slips. Typical Monday, meaning I had ten visits to make, spread out over three different hospitals. Since I’d been making these visits for months now, I’d become rather efficient at getting in, getting it done, and getting out. Ten visits would take a little over two hours. No sweat. That gave me more than enough time to make my weekly appointment with Dr. De Villa at 3:30.

Things were moving along briskly as planned until my last visit. The hospital slip listed the patient’s name as Justin Kryder, age 23. His name had been turned in by a friend who attended First Church. A notation indicated he’d been hospitalized due to severe chest pains. Wow, I thought. He’s kind of young to be having heart problems. Still, I planned to pop in, introduce myself, pray with Justin, and slip out. But even before I found his room on the fifth floor, I sensed God laying the groundwork in my spirit for something else.

When I arrived at Room 537, I found Justin sleeping peacefully on his back. Standard protocol for this scenario dictated that I leave my card and not wake the patient. As I gently placed my card on his bedside table and quietly turned to leave, I heard a faint whisper.

“Thank you.”

I wasn’t even sure he had actually spoken, but when I turned back around, his eyes had opened.

“Well hello, Justin. I’m Elmo Jenkins from First Church. I thought you were sleeping. Sorry, I didn’t mean to disturb you.”

With the slightest smile, still whispering he said, “That’s all right.”

He had a gentle face, but with sad eyes. He actually looked much younger than twenty-three, maybe sixteen or seventeen. He sat up and leaned back against his pillows. “I’ve never been to First Church,” he said with a little more volume. “Isn’t it that big church downtown? I’ve seen it on television several times. I don’t do church much.”

“Yes, First Church is downtown, and I guess it’s pretty big. A friend of yours who attends there asked us to stop by,” I said, checking his hospital visitation slip again. “But I’m sorry, I don’t have their name.”

“That’s okay. I appreciate you coming. I’ve been here a week, and you’re my first visitor.

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