I spent much of the day doing some support for a parent group member. I accompanied her when she picked up her son from detention and brought him home. He's still under electronic home monitoring. So I learned all about how the EMP is set up, how it's explained to the young person. I even got to be at the house when they set it up.
I had been editing a piece by my friend Ann about her volunteer work at a local recovery gathering place. In the essay, my friend, has fussed that she didn't have any real talents to contribute. But she was told that often a 'ministry of presence' can contribute a lot. Just being there.
A few times in recent years, I've been with friends right after they've lost a family member. You just sit with them. And listen. You don't really contribute any ideas, no brainstorming. You don't make plans You just spend the afternoon sitting with them. Because that's what's needed. A ministry of presence.
We do that at parent group. Court support. When you have to go to court with your child or do something else stressful, people volunteer to go with you. Not to do anything in particular. Just to go. Keeping it light. Be there to chat. Or wait. Often it can change the situation just enough so that an ordinarily abusive teen will quiet. New parents maybe be amazed. Three people will come down to juvenile court and just wait with me? I tell parents, you can do it for somebody else.
I think this post is likely completely out of whack in regards to 'person', first person, second person, what???
I'm realizing that all of these things are examples of 'ministry of presence'. Just showing up and being there. I have a friend whose husband is going to have surgery. The first thing I offered was to sit with her during.
I even did court support for somebody going to small claims court. She really appreciated it.
There's something to it, really very powerful. Picture rom a blog written by senator blogstetter. Used without permission
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