Ray of Hope serves many different people, with many unique needs. Community Centre programs that care for the physical and emotional needs of our Community Centre guests often come to mind, but the need for spiritual care, both for those receiving services as well as for staff, cannot be overstated. In this issue, we asked Chaplain John and Chaplain Hector about how Ray of Hope is providing spiritual care. 

Helping Those We Serve To Know and Grow In Christ

Ray of Hope has two chaplains. Chaplain Hector serves at Youth Justice Secure, and Chaplain John works in the Community Centre and with Youth Support Services. John, who has been with Ray of Hope for 28 years shared “Ray of Hope is a Christian organization. Chaplaincy is woven into the DNA, right from the get-go in 1967.” Today, our mission statement is to demonstrate the love of Christ by investing in people, inspiring hope, and transforming lives.

John described three parts of chaplaincy at Ray of Hope: Prayer, proclamation, and presence. Prayer happens throughout the week, individually with guests and staff, and through devotionals and pastoral counsel and care. Proclaiming (sharing) the Word of God happens at weekly chapel services both at Youth Justice Secure and at the Community Centre, bible studies at Youth Support Services, and at Youth Justice Secure.

Although Ray of Hope is a Christian organization, at Youth Justice Secure one of Chaplain Hector’s main roles is to ensure that youth can exercise their right to religious affiliation of their choice. Hector meets with youth soon after their intake to discuss how this can be done whether the youth practices Christianity or another religion. At times, this means there are other services offered in addition to the weekly chapel service. In this more open context, the ministry of presence becomes even more powerful. Hector shares, “One of the things I find that is important with the youth that we have is to build rapport and develop relationships with them. Many of them are not very open, they have a hard time sharing. One of the things I try to do is get involved in some of the regular programming like if they go to the gym or play pool or hang out with them on the unit. I have opportunities for conversation and get to know them a little bit better…I’m also a musician. It’s another way to get to know them and discover more about their story. It’s amazing how they open up in a different context from a bible study or chapel.”

In their roles, often John and Hector can see firsthand the power of the gospel in someone’s life. John reflected on the joy of seeing a young man’s life transformed by the love of God and was privileged to baptize him earlier this year. He asks for prayer for another young adult who came to faith in Christ and is entering the Teen Challenge program. Hector shared about another young man who came into Youth Justice Secure earlier this year in “rough shape… dealing with a lot of withdrawal symptoms, physically and emotionally having a hard time”. After Hector was able to spend some one-on-one time with him and was beginning to see a change in his attitude and a desire to learn more about the bible, the program was shut down for a few months and the young man was moved to another facility. The chaplain at the new facility contacted Hector to say how much the youth appreciated what he had experienced at Ray of Hope. Hector shares, “His faith had grown, and he took his bible with him. It was really neat to see how he continued his journey, even in the other facility…Sometimes they leave this facility, and it’s very difficult to know how they’re doing. But it’s very rewarding when you’re able to hear that they’re still in that journey and continuing to grow.”

The chaplains of Ray of Hope want to share that throughout the years they have had amazing chaplaincy volunteers; whether it’s a church team leading worship at the Monday night chapel service in the Community Centre, or a group participating in the sports chapel at Youth Justice Secure (playing games with the youth and ending with a short devotional). Chaplaincy is a great way to demonstrate the love of Christ by investing in people, inspiring hope, and transforming lives. Contact Chaplain John or Chaplain Hector to get involved or to send them a note of encouragement at info@rayofhope.net.

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