Purpose in Christian Nursing

            One look at health care reveals an industry filled with chaos, clutter, and seemingly not very purposeful. The regulations seem to continually change, the staffing and workload is on a continuum and nurses are constantly trying to keep up with the newest diseases, newest treatments and newest technologies. The calm in this storm is Jesus. I know it sounds like a cliché, but it is true. God is in control and knows exactly what is happening and is actually working out His will for today and tomorrow. Hebrews 13:8 says that Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Exodus 15:18, says the Lord God will reign forever and ever. God does not change, respond as in crisis mode, nor suddenly have new and emerging ideas. Now I do need to stop and laugh, as children of God we may enjoy our new and innovative smart phones with apps; but God’s purpose hasn’t changed--it just becomes hi-tech.

            Changes have been fast and furious in the profession and practice of nursing. It is easy to get lost in the flurry and leave our purpose in Christian nursing behind.  Judith Allen Shelley and Arlene B. Miller wrote a wonderful text entitled “Called to Care: A Christian Theology of Nursing.” In the chapter entitled, “A Christian Worldview for Nursing,” they state, “The actual tasks of nursing may vary as needs, contexts and resources change, but Christian is always a faithful response to God’s gift of salvation. We love others because God first loved us. That love is lived out in compassionate action toward our neighbors.” (page 68, 2^nd Edition, 2006). In other words, our purpose is to bring grace, truth, and love to our patients and to our colleagues.

            We discover a more specific purpose when God takes our passion (as we have discussed in a previous SBAR) and uses it for His purpose.  Here is an example of 3 Christian nurses with different purposes: A retired nurse providing nursing care for men at a homeless shelter in a recovery center; a nurse researching the implications of prayer in patient care; finally a nursing student who provides supervised childcare for disabled children so their parents can attend church service. All of these nurses are using their unique passion and talent to meld with God’s purpose in nursing. Just as our passion may not be specific the same is true for our purpose. We shouldn’t sit back and wait for a “divine plan” to be laid out before we feel we are being used by God. Instead, we are to continuously devote our careers to God’s purpose and will.

            Another thing I want to mention, is remember the nurses that I shared with you? One was a student, while another one was retired. This brings up two key points: if you are a student don’t think God is waiting for you to become a nurse before he can use you; or if you are retired, don’t assume God is done with you. Oh, no! God uses all of us all the time in furthering His kingdom. Our job description may change, but God’s purpose is constant.

            I am excited to hear about your purpose in nursing, so please tell your story!

    I recently submitted an article for a Norwegian Christian nursing journal entitled Our Faithful Journey in Nursing. To prepare for this article, I spent some time researching Postmodernism in both our culture and in nursing, and its impact on our faith. The final analysis Christians need to really get Truth solidified into our hearts and mind.  Also, what has added to this is I am doing a bible study with my friend and prayer partner regarding Spiritual Warfare, and one of the weapons, both offensively and defensively is truth. All of this to say, I suggested to my fellow Norway nurses and to you, to start the 2012 year with a commitment to memorize the Nicene Creed. This faith statement has such rich truth, but also historical significance for the Christian faith. There are links below with more information on the Nicene Creed. Follow me on Twitter for weekly phrase updates with Scripture

I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of Heaven and Earth, and of all things seen and unseen.

       And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all ages; God of God, 1 Light of Light, true God of true God; begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father; by whom all things were made.

       Who, for us all for our salvation, came down from Heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary, and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate; He suffered and was buried; and the third day He rose again, in accordance with the Scriptures; and ascended into Heaven, and sits at the right hand of the Father; and He shall come again, with glory, to judge the living and the dead; whose kingdom shall have no end.

       And I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of Life; who proceeds from the Father; 2 who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified; who spoke by the prophets.

     And I believe in one holy universal 3 and apostolic Church. 4  I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins; and I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come.           

                                       Amen.

Nicene Creed with scripture references
 

Nicene Creed info on Wikipedia

    Prayer is such an important part of our personal and our professional life! We know that, yet all of us struggle to pray more. We do so many things to assist us in our prayer life: memorize scripture, listen to sermons, attend bible studies, read books, join prayer ministries... YET, we still lack a life and a nursing practice pulsating with prayer.  Let's
follow the sports logo of Nike:





For help, read the article and choose one of the suggestions: to pray for yourself, your workplace, colleagues, and/or patient to implement prayer into your nursing practice.

Journal of Christian Nursing "Christian Nursing 101"

    In the article, we explored loving God with all heart, with all our soul, with all our strength, and with all our mind  (Luke 10:27). All our heart is found when we make God that center of not only our personal lives, but our professional lives, as well. All our soul, can be found when all our decisons are in an obedient response to God's leading in nursing. Loving God with our mind, is really back-to-basics of submitting all our thought patterns to the Lord, as well as bathing our education and practice in truth. Finally, loving God with all of our strength, is when we give all our talents, gifts, etc to be used for the body of nursing in Christ. 
    There is much overlap, yet it is important for us to explore places we may fall short on in expressing the love of God in nursing. Which one is more challenging for you as a Christian nurse? 
    For me personally, my challenge is being obedient to God in where he is taking me. I am type A, planner, etc type and I always want to come up with the plan and then ask God to bless it. I have been working on letting God come up with the plan and me following. 
    Share with me, your struggle so that we can all grow in faith and love.

Journal of Christian Nursing--online

            Many of us think of caring as an important part of nursing, yet hospital staff are telling me that nurses are no longer as caring as they used to be. I had one staff person share with me that she was in the room and the patient was crying in pain and distress. The nurse came in, turned off the call light and began hanging a piggyback antibiotic. She did ask the patient why she called, but never looked at the patient and hung the medication. The nurse did say she would be back with pain medicine, but never once looked at the patient, touched the patient or acknowledge her beyond “words to the IV pole.”

           As Christians, we should be the most caring of all people, because of the example and teachings of Jesus Christ. Yet, we all know Christians that aren’t even civil to one another, let alone caring. So then, what can be our model of caring in Christian nursing or how can we live out the example of Jesus? When I reflect on my model of caring in nursing, I think of empathy. I really try to imagine what is going on with the person, almost like the old adage, “Don’t judge someone until you have walked a mile in their moccasins (shoes).”  Imagine how hard it is to be diagnosed with Stage IV Breast Cancer, Multiple Sclerosis or losing your loved one in a car wreck, loss of a child, etc. All of the diseases, illnesses, and traumas that we face as nurses, stop me in my tracks, wrenches my heart, and spurs me to strive to be an excellent, caring nurse. What is in your model of caring in nursing?

            In the article for Christian Nursing 101, I discuss the necessary components of a fruitful nursing practice using the acronym VINE: Vitality of Joy, Intimately connected with the Lord through unceasing prayer, Nutrients found in the bible and Christian nursing resources and Emulating the living Savior. Is there one of these four components that speaks to your heart more than the others?

            For me it is “Emulating the living Savior.” I have to share with you an experience to explain. One of the hospitals I work at has a wonderful spiritual care department, with many caring, gentle chaplains who work very hard to meet the spiritual needs of the patients, families, and staff. There is a specific gentleman who radiates peace, gentleness, and caring. He doesn’t even say anything. When he enters a patient’s room, I feel his calm demeanor. One day, I realized I wanted to radiate this same qualities.  As an energetic, med-surg nurse who feels like most of the time I seemingly run on a hamster wheel with tendencies to be klutzy and loud; the thought of being meek and gentle is a hope of mine—found through Christ Jesus. How about you, what components of the VINE do you pray for?

    A word in scripture for passion can be seen with the word “zeal.” In 2 Kings 19:31 it says “The zeal of the Lord shall perform this.” God is zealous in his ways and with those he loves. The Old Testament is a picture of God’s passionate devotion for the Israelites. God exhibited this zeal while providing for his people. Yahweh also sent many prophets to communicate his love personally to his people. Of course, the ultimate display of his passion is through His son, Jesus Christ.

This same passion or zeal was continued through the apostles in the first century. In Acts 2, verses 42-44. The passage shares how the early Christians were always together, devoted to one another and were hungry for the teaching of the apostles. They were zealous for the work of Christ to continue, which it did.  Later on in the passage in verse 47 it says, “The Lord added to their number day by day.”  Their zeal to spread the work of Christ manifested in their lives and impacted those around them.

    As a Christian nurse, we can have this same passion. As nurses, our overall passion is to bring Christ to those around us, just like the 1^st century Christians. Maybe at this point I should back up and and ask do you see your career or job as a nurse as a calling from God?  Or as a ministry for Jesus? Or do you see how God has chosen you to be a nurse? It can be a bit mind boggling—but I believe God has called men and women to come and care for the sick and suffering. How that may occur may be different for each one of us. Whether you are in academics, research, administration, or the clinical setting you are bringing the love of Jesus to patients. 
    Just like our job descriptions may be different, our passion in nursing may be different. Maybe you are passionate about the uninsured or the homeless, prayer in nursing, or disabled children.  If you are unsure of your passion in nursing, then spend some time in prayer seeking the Lord. Is there some area of nursing that is really exciting to you or “bugs” you? I use the word bugs or irritate you, because sometimes our passion comes from a dislike of a situation. Changing practices, petitioning for legislative changes, or taking a leadership position to change the current work environment, can be areas where our passion is revealed through a dislike of a situation

 On the other hand, when you think of passion, are you someone who better relates to floundering in the big ocean of nursing without much steam nor direction? This is true for many of us. I see students enter nursing school knowing exactly what they want, while others are exploring. I say, if you are exploring with your passion or your career, then keep exploring and be open to what God wants to do in your life. 
    Some ideas on helping you to discover your passion is to seek the Holy Spirit through prayer, journal your ideas and thoughts, as well as talk to close friends and colleagues. This process will help you discover your passion in nursing.
    Tell me about your passion in nursing!

    Hi, I am Carrie the founder of nurses4him.org, a website dedicated to providing encouragement and resources for Christian nurses. Along with resources and a prayer blog, the website includes SBAR. SBAR’s is short for “spiritual bits and reflections.” These are short devotions to assist nurses in applying scripture to their practice. This introduction series focuses on “passion, purpose, and prayer.”

    When we look at the life of Jesus, we see he was passionate and purposeful in his ministry on earth and constantly in prayer.  The first century believers also exhibited passion, purpose and prayer as found in Acts 2:42. “They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles' teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.” Just like the first century believers, the Lord has given us a passion and purpose in nursing with prayer as our essential tool.

    I became a Christian while taking my prerequisites for nursing, thus when I graduated and started working as an RN, I was challenged to integrate my new faith into my new career. I knew the Lord had called me to be a nurse and had sustained me through trying personal times during nursing school; and I wanted to honor and glorify God through the work he had for me. 
    I immediately became connected to Nurses Christian Fellowship and grew as a Christian and as a professional nurse. Over time, I discovered the lack of resources for the new Christian who was a nurse or a Christian who was new to nursing. Also, what is truly the difference between a nurse who is a Christian and one who doesn't profess faith in Jesus Christ? 
    This all lead to a desire to get down to the bare bones of Christian Nursing. If I taught a class, or led a workshop on the basic tenants of Christian Nursing, what would it include? Well, I created a bible study to answer the question.
    What is amazing is when God is working in your spirit about something, he is also working in others. This is how we know it is from God, for he is putting the same passion and need in other people that he has placed in you. That is exactly what happened with the editor of JCN and leadership for NCF. When I spoke with them about my bible study, they agreed with the need for something on the basics of Christian Nursing, but thought a regular feature in the JCN would be a better place. I agreed, who am I to disagree with God. 
    So, that is the story of Christian Nursing 101. This regular column seeks to explore the basic tenants of Christian Nursing and be a resource for nurses new to the Christian faith, Christians new to nursing, or Christian nurses seeking ways to integrate their faith with their nursing practice. 
    I hope you will follow along with each issue of JCN and join the discussion. As you can see, I am playing catch-up I welcome your input on what you think are the basic tenants of Christian Nursing. 

    Part of the reason for getting this blog up and running was to share with what has been happening with me and nurses4him.org. Because of my involvement with NCF (Nurses Christian Fellowship and my writings for  "Christian Nursing 101" in JCN (Journal of Christian Nursing), I was asked to work with NCFI (Nurses Christian Fellowship International) to develop Spiritual Care content. The first place this content will be shared will be in Manila, Philippians at the HCFI (Healthcare Christian Fellowship International) 75th Celebration. To say I was overwhelmed is an understatement! As a nurse, teacher, and Christian, the opportunity to teach Spiritual Care internationally is amazing--I still need to pinch myself! This was so beyond what I thought God would call me to do, that I had to get a passport!
    Needless to say, the development of the content is well underway and I am so privelaged and honored to work with the NCFI staff. Their passion for nurses and the profession inspires me. They have scholarly insight in the most recent spiritual care research, practice, and education. I have learned so much from their experience in teaching and mentoring international healthcare providers, as well as their love for our Lord Jesus Christ. 
     At this point, we have submitted are 4 days/12 hours of content for the Art and Science of Spiritual Care and are waiting back to here from the reviewers. These are various content leaders who read different manuscripts to ensure the appropriateness for healthcare providers, as well as adherence to the Word of God and Christian teachings. 
    Please join in praying for this opportunity to reach out to our international brothers and sisters in Christ, who like ourselves, have a burden for the sick and hurting. We want to encourage them in their faith, as well as assist them in meeting the spiritual needs of patients. We pray for the love of Christ to be present in our teaching, as well as the discernment and strength for the difficulties Christians face internationally. Please pray for Barbara, Tove, Swee Eng, and myself as we continue to prepare for the presentation, travel arrangements, and God's guidance.