Welcome to Chautauqua Rehabilitation & Nursing Center

I was thinking today about a young boy that was in a class I taught several years ago. He was about 4 yrs old at the time, absolutely precious!

My lesson that day came from Matthew 14:27-29;

²⁷ But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.

²⁸ And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water.

²⁹ And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.

I had given much thought about how to present this story to a group of 4-5 yr olds. We had tables in the classroom that had short legs on them to accommodate this age group. They were all seated at the tables when I entered the room. After practicing it several times the day before, I came running in and slid toward the tables and ended up in a squat right in front of the tables looking them square in the eyes. I don’t know if I scared them or if they were in a state of shock at what they had just seen. Either way, I had their undivided attention.

I began my story with these words; “Did you guys know that Jesus walked on water?!!!” What happened next, I did not, nor could I ever have expected. The little 4 yr old boy jumped straight up in amazement and with utmost sincerity and shouted, “I can too!  I did it yesterday”!

Thinking what a great storyteller I was, I fired the next question. “Did you really?” I asked him. “How did you do that?” His excitement was building as he began to back up really fast, “I have been practicing”. Then all of a sudden he stopped and shouted, as he began running toward me, “You have to get a running start, like this! And you can’t be scared, you just gotta do it!”

I stood there totally speechless, as I realized that he had obviously been ‘skimming’ at the beach the day before. He did live very close to the beach, and it was the middle of the summer. Wow, out of the mouth of babes came the most startling truth that day!

Just like the LORD told Peter, we must be excited about the journey! We need not be afraid, because HE is with us, if we ask! And when we commit, we must get a running start and not look back, nor side to side. Just do it! We must not allow our circumstances to derail the plans GOD has for us.

“LORD,                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      Fill me with the audacity to take you at your word. Keep me focused on Your will for my life, not distracted by my circumstances. Let my spirit be constantly overwhelmed with the exuberance of my conversion to enable me to face the challenges of life. Amen.

Chautauqua Elders celebrate the lives of friends and loved ones that are no longer with us.

The Spirituality Department hosted our 1st annual “Cupcake Wars” competition.  It was a “sweet” success to say the least! It was judged by 3 of our elders from various neighborhoods.  The cupcakes had to have a “Christmas” theme centered around an old favorite Christmas carol or song. They were judged on display, presentation, biteability and flavor. The winner was “Winter Wonderland” by Mandy Griffiths and was featured at our “Christmas Cupcake Celebration” later on that day. Everyone had such a wonderful time enjoying the fellowship, cupcakes and Christmas music.