EXPERIENCED SAINTS – GETTING TO KNOW MORE ABOUT THESE HIGHLY RESPECTED REMNANT FELLOWSHIP MEMBERS – 11/12/13
We are told in Leviticus 19 to rise in the presence of the aged…to show respect…and that this is a display and attitude of reverence before GOD when we do this. We certainly are being taught that message CLEARLY here at the Remnant Fellowship! We are blessed at this Church to have a very active, joyful, and beautiful segment of Saints who are living for GOD now more than ever…as He takes them into the later years of their lives. And they are setting a fine example…for the younger Saints…of how to make GOD EVERYTHING. No matter what their careers may have entailed, no matter where their extended families may be, no matter when they were called to this Truth in their lives, they have RESPONDED! And they continue to lead by example. Praise GOD!
This article’s goal will be to shed some light upon our Experienced Group and all that they do in this Church. We also will feature a “Q&A” chat with CLARK BUCHI, one of our esteemed Deacons who, along with his wife Judy, work with Linda Hardin and with Shepherds Larry and Karen Sims to help organize and coordinate Group activities and meetings. If you were to watch the activities and work of any of our extended Remnant Ministries groups in action, you would see our Experienced Saints enthusiastically contributing their time, efforts, and resources EVERYWHERE in this Church and throughout Weigh Down Ministries! Let’s take a look at some of the words that Clark shared with us…
RN = Remnant News
CB = Clark Buchi
RN – Clark, how often does the Experienced Group meet together?
CB – We meet quarterly. That seems to work nicely with everyone.
RN – How are those meetings conducted and what types of issues and topics do you cover?
CB – As an example, at our most recent meeting on November 2nd, approximately 55 Experienced members attended the gathering. After a recent survey of the group about their volunteer experiences within the Church, we found that 60 percent volunteer with various Remnant Ministries opportunities once or MORE per WEEK. And an additional 32 percent volunteer approximately once per month. I felt that this response was rather amazing. So many Experienced members do SO MUCH! I also asked the group if there were other ministries here in the Church that they might suggest we undertake or be interested in. There seemed to be much interest in the domestic arts. Some mentioned that elder women were urged to teach younger women, and while spiritual matters take first priority, other possibilities existed such as sewing, knitting, or crocheting. Several ladies expressed interest in teaching others. We also are looking at getting even more organized in how to better visit each other when in need and meet the needs of others in various ways.
RN – Please talk about any projects and/or points of emphasis that you as a group are focused on right now.
CB – One issue that our group naturally thinks about at this point in our lives relates to End of Life issues. At a recent meeting we were blessed to have Gwen come to us and discuss passing from this life and the issues and planning related to that. What a blessing that was!!! She was kind enough to take questions and answer them thoroughly. We all left with a much deeper understanding of the physical and spiritual help available to us, as well as a vision of the future.
Another topic we’ve discussed has been how the Experienced could get plugged in to TECH-related services (Remnant daily e-mail encouragement, Truthstream, e-mail overall, Facebook, Twitter, etc.). Since that is sort of a one-on-one activity, we arranged with Marc Dunn to organize a one-on-one help effort and the tech team met with any individual who had a need. This has worked quite successfully. As far as we know, all who have asked for help have been helped.
RN – Please share any services and/or needs that the Experienced Group likes to provide for the Saints.
CB – Here’s an interesting “stat” as a “for instance” – It might be interesting to know that this Church owns 95 tablecloths. Every one of these tablecloths is handled, taken home, cleaned, washed, dried, folded, ironed when needed, put on hangers, labeled as to size and type, and returned to the Church Building in time for the next event – even if there is only one week in between events. Some tablecloths require dry cleaning. ALL of this tablecloth work is done by the Experienced Saints! And it is a lot of work. The Experienced Saints do a lot of the kitchen work as well. In addition, much of the cleaning work (Sanctuary, Fellowship Hall, and Basement Area) is done by the Experienced and this work allows much interaction with Remnant children. Cleaning is a great mixer!!!
As you can see, we’re just scratching the surface of what this Experienced group of Saints means to this Church. If you keep a watchful eye open, you’ll see these Saints providing meals to families in their homes and working on the Building and Grounds committee at the Church Building. They help prepare our weekly Church Communion. They are generous in their giving…both with their time and with their finances and other resources. They help with Decorating and Wedding preparations. They help out with the Resource Room. They coordinate Weigh Down classes and are active with our Weigh Down Facebook Group. You’ll see them giving their time volunteering with the Prison Ministry, preparing letters and traveling to meet with our brothers and sisters in Christ at various Prison locations. In fact, a large percentage of the Prison Ministry Team is made up of these dear Saints. If you stop by the Weigh Down Building during business hours you will often see Experienced members helping with Shipping, Distribution, copying CDs and DVDs, and preparing packages for shipment. You will see them cleaning the Building after hours as well. And because many of these Saints are grandparents and even great-grandparents, you will often see them helping with childcare…and our Remnant children universally adore their gentle hearts and spirits! The list could go on and on and on. This Q&A with Mr. Clark Buchi and brief article offers just a small sampling of what our Experienced Saints mean to us and how they are plugged into this Church. And we hope to share much more as the weeks go by! SO – please take some time and get to know more of these dear, esteemed members of our Church. The wisdom, knowledge, and perspective they’ve gained from their time so far in this life is INVALUABLE to this Church and its Leadership! And we all continue to benefit from their selfless examples. May we show honor and respect, as Gwen has taught us to do for many years in words and in actions, to every “Experienced” Remnant Saint!
