What's the mission of the church (and of special needs ministry)?

Recently, Crossway released the book What is the Mission of the Church? by Kevin DeYoung and Greg Gilbert. I haven't read it yet (though I should have my copy waiting for me when I get home!), but that's okay because I'm not reviewing it today. Instead, I'm sharing an article Kevin wrote in response to reviews of the book. That article - the mission of the church in living color - gave me a lot of food for thought about special needs ministry.

Before you jump into the article, let me give you a little context because you'll be entering in mid-conversation. As I mentioned, this post is coming on the heels of the release of a book about what the church's mission truly is. In response to some reviews, Kevin shares here about what his church does that might be categorized as social justice and what they don't/won't do on that front. It's a good practice to do that with your own special needs ministries: what do you do, and what won't you do?

One example would be the way that Stonebriar Community Church in Frisco, TX, uses iPads in disability ministry. Meaghan Wall shared with me when I visited their church that they do use apps for Bible memory, Christian songs, and other faith-building activities, but they don't use therapy-related apps.

Why? Because that's not their purpose as a church.

Likewise, several of Kevin's points about what his church does not do resonate with our approach to disability ministry at Providence Baptist Church, particularly the following. We are not all about:

• Focusing a lot of our energies, resources, and people on good effort that will be well-supported by governments and non-Christians.

• Partnering with teams or agencies that do not allow evangelism.

• Running social services for the community out of our church.

• Undertaking charitable projects or missions endeavors that make us feel good but don’t actually help those we serve and may actually take away their dignity or foster dependence.

We do at times partner with secular organizations - for example, several are publicizing our upcoming respite event and a few are contributing volunteers for it as well - but we're still a church and we still will use the name of Christ in what we do and say. If people are seeking a secular respite care experience, then they can tap into resources outside of the church, although those pickings are slim. If they want therapies or social stories apart from Christ, then the church isn't the best vehicle for providing that. We don't want to just replicate secular social services within a church building.

We have something much greater to offer than that.


Now I know the social justice/evangelism debate can get fiery, but I think we can all stand a little heat while keeping in mind that we have the most important thing - Christ - in common, right? And I'll also add that my understanding of scripture doesn't make it an either/or proposition; we can (and should) be about sharing Christ in word and deed. 

So - all that said - what are your thoughts on this?

99 Balloons: A disability ministry organization worth knowing

I knew about Matt and Ginny and Eliot before I became involved in special needs ministry. When I found out I was pregnant with my first child in May of 2006, I started reading more and more blogs. In doing so, I stumbled across a blog by these two parents, whose names never stuck in my mind back then, about their son, whose name I wouldn't forget: Eliot. He was born six months and nine days before my daughter, Jocelyn, yet he died before she was born. I prayed many prayers over their sweet family (and, to be honest, cried many hormonal tears!) as their son was born, lived his sweet but short life, and died - all during my pregnancy with Jocelyn.

I could tell his story, but this video does a better job. (Just a tip: Get yourself some tissues first.)



As I watch Jocelyn grow here on earth, Eliot grows as well - not in human form, but in legacy. God, through Eliot, taught Matt and Ginny much, including how many ways churches can show love to families with special needs. Out of their desire to honor both God and Eliot, 99 Balloons was founded.

About a month ago, Matt and I chatted via phone. We were both encouraged by it, probably me more so than Matt. During that call, I learned more about what they do. And, let me tell you, I love it.

One focus of theirs is church-based respite care in the United States. They call the events rEcess, with the E for Eliot. If you've been around this blog much, you know that's a passion of mine as well. I've blogged about our church's respite care programs before, and my friends at Key Ministry, Snappin' Ministries, and Nathaniel's Hope are deeply invested in the church-based respite care movement as well.

Their other focus is on orphans with special needs outside of this country. The needs are great, with the greatest need being Christ. The conditions are heart-breaking, but all words to describe them fall short. To that end, 99 Balloons has partnered with TEAMworks to bring home and therapy training to both orphanages and parents with children with special needs. Right now, their efforts are largely in the Ukraine and Guatemala. Read more about it here.

I'll have more to share about 99 Balloons in the near future, but they deserve an introductory post first. Pray for 99 Balloons and for Matt & Ginny and their family, including Lena who is still living in an orphanage in the Ukraine but who will be joining them through adoption (hopefully soon!).

disability ministry weekly round-up {11-28-11}

December starts this week. Oh, my!

This is an encouraging story of disability and faith. The story is supposed to be about a church and others coming together to buy updated prosthetic legs for a college student, but the real story that shines through in it is the one of a God using disability to capture the heart of a young man. That man says,

"People call this is a disability," he says. "I call it an ability to display the glory of God. He blessed me with this gift so I could see the goodness in people and in him. How lucky is that?"

The thanks I owe my child with special needs & To my friends who struggle at the holidays: I am listing these two together because I think they can be read best as a pair. In the first, Ellen from Love That Max reflects upon what her son with special needs (or, as she likes to say, special powers) has taught her. In the second, John from The Works of God encourages those parents who aren't feeling as thankful. For those of us who minister to these families, we need to understand that parents can be thankful and not-so-thankful all at the same time. Or they might alternate between the two responses. Or dwell somewhere in between. The lesson? Meet them where they are.

Carrie with Children blogs about Target's inclusion of a child with Down syndrome in one of their ads. This brought to mind a challenge for the church: do our ministry materials include images of those with special needs? If your church has people with special needs, then those materials should reflect that.

A church realized a family - including a single mom, a seven-year-old child with autism and a seizure disorder, and a grandmother on dialysis - was living in sub-standard conditions, so what did they do? They bought and fixed up a mobile home for them. Read about it here.

What December traditions do you look forward to each year?

love the Lord. and your neighbor {Luke 10:25-28}

And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him [Jesus] to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”

He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?”

And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.”

And he said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.”

{Luke 10:25-28}

...

Truth in Tinsel: An Advent ebook I'm using at home & church (only $2.99 TODAY)

I love the idea of daily Advent activities with my preschool-aged children. I really do.

And I love the idea of having meaningful ornament crafts to make in special needs ministry (like at our December respite event or in our special needs ministry sensory room). Honestly, I do love the idea.

But I just don't love having to come up with the practical elements - the supply list, the craft, the Bible verse, and the activities - first. 

Which is why I love the Advent e-book that Amanda from the blog Impress Your Kids wrote. It's called Truth in Tinsel, and every day - 24 in all - has (1) a "read it together" passage (a handful of verses, nothing too long), (2) a "make it together" craft (a Christmas ornament that goes along with the passage), (3) a "talk about it" section (some kid-friendly discussion points), and (4) a "do more" suggestion (tips to extend beyond the lesson itself). 

While this was designed more for moms like me with preschool to early elementary aged kiddos, it is also a GREAT tool for children's ministry and special needs ministry. The subtitle is "An Advent Experience for Little Hands," so I will black that out with electrical tape when I print it for our sensory classroom because we'll do these activities with bigger hands too. 

I could simply say I recommend it, but that wouldn't be as powerful as these words: I'm using it. I'm going through all 24 days with my kids, and I'll be doing at least a handful of the days in a ministry setting. 

And if you want to do the same, it's $2.99 today (usually $4.99). Order it here. 

thankful

In the past year, God has done more with disability ministry at my church, across the country, and throughout the nations than I expected.

Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
{Ephesians 3:20-21}

But there is still much work to be done, including the work of prayer.

Then he [Jesus] said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”

{Matthew 9:37-38}

Thanks for being a part of what God is doing to change hearts and lives, in prayer and other action.

Making This Christmas Count: Providence Baptist Church's respite care event

On December 10 from 4-7pm, families of kids with special needs (age 10 and under) and their siblings will be cared for at Providence Baptist Church at our Making This Christmas Count respite care event. While our trained volunteers love them, parents will get a respite to Christmas shop, go on a date, or do whatever other child-free activity they would like. Every child with special needs will have a one-on-one buddy for the event, and siblings will be supervised as well as they rotate through themed activity rooms. This is part of our church's Making This Christmas Count week of outreach events, and most of our guests will be families who have never visited our church before.

We're excited. If you're not in Raleigh or the surrounding area (and even if you are!), please pray

• for our preparations
• for the health of our families (at our October respite event, many had to cancel at the last minute due to sickness; plus it's cold and flu season, which doesn't bode well for little ones who may be more susceptible to illness due to their special needs)
• for energy and wisdom for our leadership team
• for God to provide the remaining volunteers needed
• for information about the event to reach the families who need it
• for stamina and protection for me, as my health has been less than ideal lately (I'm on week three of a cold, which means I might be entering my annual fall bout of pneumonia)

For local folks, there is still room for families (and volunteers, though pre-event training and background checks are required). Here is the link for registration for both families and volunteers, and here's a link to learn about the other Making This Christmas Count outreaches that week.

And, if you have happen to have friends and followers in the Raleigh area, please post a message like this on Facebook or Twitter so we can get the word out:

Have a child (birth-10) w special needs in Raleigh? FREE trained childcare at Providence Baptist on Dec. 10 from 4-7pm http://www.pray.org/news--events/providence-kids.aspx

Thanks!

the gap between local churches and the disabled population

I was planning to review the book, Why, O God?: Suffering and Disability in the Bible and Church, but I think it might be better to just let you judge for yourself based on quotes. I'll be sharing some throughout the coming weeks.

"I have worked as a physical therapist for twelve years. Approximately nine of those years have been in home health. Clearly a monumental gap exists between the local churches and the disabled population. All too often individuals and families go through the most difficult trials and circumstances of their lives in isolation from the Christian community. Available support is fleeting. Relationships are few. Stress is high. Caregiver burnout is frequent and inevitable. Marriages fall apart. Abuse sometimes settles in. Financial ruin draws nearer everyday. Who will help close this gap while helping to meet real needs? It is the prayer of the authors of this text that the current and future generations of pastors and Christian servant-leaders will lead their congregations to do just that. Typically if the shepherds do not lead, the flock will not follow."

~Daniel R. Thomson, his chapter "A Biblical Disability-Ministry Perspective" in Why, O God? Suffering and Disability in the Bible and Church, p. 24

disability ministry weekly round-up {11-21-11}

Woodbine church "adopts" autism classes: I love what this church has done, "adopting" classes in the public school system to ensure that kids with special needs in their district have the basic educational tools they need. What a great outreach!

Autism and Cyberchurch: The Easier Option: Honestly, I think the better option would be for the church to step up to make the physical church environment a more welcoming, less hostile option for these families, but - especially in areas in which churches aren't stepping up to include the indispensable parts (per 1 Corinthians 12:22) - this article and the comments give good food for thought.

Down syndrome test will enable scientists to detect condition in the womb: This article about Down syndrome testing that is less invasive than previous methods has the sub-headline, "breakthrough could prove highly controversial as it could lead to an increase in abortions."

Column: Will America cull people with Down syndrome? As a follow-up to the article above, Dr. Brian Skotko addresses the issues that come along with new testing options. Pray to the Life-Giver that life - all life, regardless of ability level - will be valued and protected.

The Bible, Disability, and The Church: I haven't gotten this book yet, but I will. I found myself agreeing and disagreeing with various points in the author's theological tome about Down syndrome.  

Accessible Church Websites: How could your church website - which is the first entry point to your church for many visitors - be more welcoming to people with disabilities?

Autism and God: This post is written by a Jewish man about his son's understanding of God, but I think it is helpful for Christians as well.

Faith and Disability: This blogger - who has Becker's Muscular Dystrophy - responds to a question about how faith in God makes a difference in the face of disability.

The Poorest of the Poor: A compelling piece about why our overseas missions efforts shouldn't leave out those with disabilities. I hope to have more to share with you in the near future about how we, as Christians in the US, can reach out to people with disabilities in other countries.

99 Balloons: As a hint to what I'll be sharing soon about international efforts, read this. 

Love is an action word: Yes. Yes. And yes. Jo is a momma of a kiddo with special needs, and her words encourage me.

Father of autistic child pleas for better ministry to the disabled: This movement isn't just happening in the US; this article is from Australia.

Fidget toys: Do they really work? Great article on how to and how not to use fidget toys in ministry settings.

Handmade gifts from special needs moms that pay for their kids' therapies: Looking for gift ideas for Christmas? Here are some options that will let you support a mom who is selling handmade items to pay for her child's needs.

Teaching tips: How can a teacher get a group of kids to settle down? Here's one strategy that worked for Katie, and I bet it will give you more ideas for similar techniques that might help kids settle - without nagging - in your Sunday school classes.

Man in the Arena: Good perspective on balancing time in the arena and times of rest.

Visiting Church with Your Special Needs Child: Great story and tips from my friend Sandra.

Ethan's first church service: A great story of one child with autism flourishing in his first "big church" experience!

And this song (via youTube, but note that the "video" is just a still of the album cover, so it's for your listening pleasure, not really viewing!) is precious in sharing truth that families with special needs can cling to. It's also precious to me on a personal level because it came out less than a year after I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis; I heard it for the first time as I pulled into a specialist's office for yet another complication with my health, this time one that we feared would endanger our unborn son. The outcome of that complication was not damaging to our son, but the song resonated with me then and still does now. I've never made it through with dry eyes.

afflicted, but not crushed {2 Cor 4:7-12, 16-18}

But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves; we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. So death works in us, but life in you.

Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal. 

{2 Corinthians 4:7-12, 16-18}

out of my spiritual slumber, my God is worth trusting

I was planning to review the book, Why, O God?: Suffering and Disability in the Bible and Church, but I think it might be better to just let you judge for yourself based on quotes. I'll be sharing some throughout the coming weeks. 
 

"When my accident happened, maybe the Devil's motive was to shipwreck the faith of that young, seventeen-year-old girl. Maybe he wanted to use her to make a mockery out of God's goodness. Maybe he hoped to defame God's sweet character. But remember, God is in the business of aborting devilish schemes. And God's motive in my accident was to abort that devilish scheme and turn a headstrong, stubborn, rebellious teenagers into a woman who can reflect something of his patience, something of his perseverance, something of his endurance, something of his character. And after forty years in a wheelchair, I can say that my own suffering has lifted me out of my spiritual slumber. It has got me seriously thinking about the lordship of Christ in my life. It has helped convince this skeptical, cynical world that my God is worth trusting. It has shown me that we can be loyal to him despite our afflictions and infirmities, that disability ministry should have priority in the church, and that heaven is real.

~Joni Eareckson Tada in her chapter of Why, O God?: Suffering and Disability in the Bible and Church, p. 20

disappointment points us to the One who will never disappoint

Based on my plans, I was supposed to leave this morning on a family road trip (now delayed by a day or so).

I was also supposed to get an IV treatment for my rheumatoid arthritis on Tuesday (now scheduled for this afternoon).

The woman who scheduled it was supposed to schedule that IV for this past Tuesday but erroneously put it in the calendar for next Tuesday, when I was supposed to be in Texas already.

Supposed to...

The plans of the heart belong to man,
   but the answer of the tongue is from the LORD.
Psalm 16:1

Our God is in the heavens;
    he does all that he pleases.
Psalm 115:3

God knows. My plans didn't work out as I thought they were "supposed to" but they are exactly as God planned.

And that's good enough for me.

D6:More than a conference. A movement in family ministry.

About five years ago, our church became much more intentional about equipping parents as the primary disciplers of their children. That's what Deuteronomy 6 is all about, particularly verses 4-9:

Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

Old models of children's and youth ministry invited parents to drop their children off and let the church take care of their spiritual needs. Statistics show us, though, that that model doesn't work and that family matters. This shouldn't surprise us, given what God has already shown us in Deuteronomy 6.

By high school, I went to church alone a lot of the time. I went to two different churches, and I don't think leaders at either church tried to engage my parents. To be honest, I don't think most of the leaders even knew that I came alone. Lots of kids separated from their parents as soon as they arrived at church, and I just seemed like one of those kids. It's rare for kids whose parents are disengaged from church to become adults who love the church, but I've always been a bit of an oddball. God can do anything, and I am thankful for that.

Because I see the difference that family makes - especially now as my husband and I raise our two preschoolers and any other children God brings to our family in the future - I love what the D6 conference is all about. According to their website, 

Deuteronomy 6:7 tells us three things: Love God, treasure His Word, and teach this to the next generation. The vision of the D6 Conference is to champion a movement of parents who disciple their own kids and teens in partnership with their local church. The D6 Conference is dedicated to helping churches, leaders, parents, and volunteers to develop a generational discipleship model based on Deuteronomy 6. 

And I'm excited to be among the pre-conference workshop speakers this year. Yep, there will be at least two labs on special needs ministry from yours truly. I am humbled and excited.

D6 2012 will be September 26-28 in the Dallas area. I know it seems like a long ways off right now, but you might want to make a decision SOON. Why? Because from now until November 22, you can register an unlimited number of team members for just $169 each, plus your Senior Pastor attends FREE (just use the code PASTOR12; only one code allowed per church). 

Go to d6conference.com to register or learn more!

disability ministry weekly round-up {11-14-11}

Good intentions gone awry: Mark Stephenson writes about where Max Lucado missed the mark in the devotion about disease and disability in his latest book. Mark does a great job of avoiding both major traps for this sort of thing: (1) avoiding it altogether in our Christian celebrity culture in which most believers know the names of big-time Christian authors/speakers but couldn't tell you the name of an orphan and (2) taking pride in criticizing another Christian. Instead, Mark is humble, honest, and helpful.

Good finds! This post on The Inclusive Church provides some basic suggestions for children's ministry toys from the Toy R Us special needs catalog.

Special Needs, Special Words This post about how we talk about people with disabilities is important. My favorite lines were:

Tim Shriver, Chairman of the Special Olympics, coined the phrases "diffabilities" and "giftedness."  I like these words.  But when talking about children, I prefer that we call them "children." The word "children" implies a million different things. “Children” means hope.  “Children” means dreams and imagination.  Unless someone tells a child they can’t do something, they believe they can do anything.   On any given day, a child may be happy, a runner, a learner, joyful, weepy, ornery, a baseball player, or Spiderman.

Churchcasting: Is it okay to just tune into church via the web or TV instead of actually going? This article wasn't written with families with disabilities in mind, but I have often heard stories in the disability community from those who are forgoing traditional church (often due to lack of acceptance there) and instead tuning in from home. I think having the option is great - for example, for seasons of life in which special needs (like health-related ones) make traditional church attendance out of the question - but community is absent or severely lacking if we disengage from church altogether.

Who Is Worth It? Stark life decisions in Uganda. Not sure how much it is related to this blog's content, but I feel like it is. Thanks, Challies, for linking to this a couple days ago.

A Father's Journey with his Daughter with Down Syndrome: I haven't listened to this yet, because I spent the weekend in bed with a head cold, but it's been recommended by enough folks I trust to pass it on.

Welcoming Words: Minding the Gap We sometimes use language and cling to traditions without offering explanations for them. This can make church confusing and challenging for some of those with disabilities ... and some of those without disabilities too.

Policies, Predators, and Penn State Football Jared provides good commentary, solid suggestions, and exceptional policies in the wake of the news out of Penn State. Maybe someday I'll be ready to write a post about this, but our church went through a predator situation five years ago and my heart still aches thinking about all the brokenness. It happens. Don't lure yourself into the false belief that your church is immune or that you are a good judge of character. It happens.

This song isn't specific to disability ministry, but it eloquently captures why I do what I do with this blog and in my church each week.

comfort. {1 Corinthians 1:3-5}

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, 

the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, 

who comforts us in all our affliction, 

so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, 

with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. 

For as we share abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, 

so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too.

1 Corinthians 1:3-5

When God owns the ministry,

we all are on common ground.

the ministry can grow stronger because it's not built on me.

conflict can occur without getting ugly.

other people matter more.

my own feelings matter less.

worry isn't necessary, because it's not my job to be in control anyway.

people are included, whether or not we're BFFs, because I'm not central to what we do.

I can share what we're doing freely with others because it's not mine anyway.

it's a good place to be.

Who owns your ministry?

It's actually a trick question. If you consider it "your ministry," then you've already given me the answer.

God's the one doing the work, and we don't deserve to take part in it. Praise him, though, for making us worthy, not by our own behavior but by the actions of his son. 

It's not our ministry.

It's his.

Now to him who is able 

to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, 

according to the power at work within us,
to him be glory in the church 

and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, 

forever and ever. Amen.

{Ephesians 3:20-21}

disability ministry weekly round-up {11-9-11}

My apologies that this is a little late! I'm excited about this week's round-up of links, and I hope you'll find them helpful too as you think about how you can do life and share Christ with people with disabilities in your church and community.

Registration is LIVE for volunteers and families for our December 10th respite care event. Check it out here! If you're in the Raleigh area and have a child with special needs, we would love to have you there. Feel free to share the link with friends, neighbors, and others - we want the word out! You don't have to have any connection to Providence in order to attend. Let me know if you have any questions!

Inclusion Fusion will be accessible online - all the videos and notes - through DECEMBER 3, so don't worry if you didn't get to watch them all last weekend!

Usually, I reserve these articles for the list at the end, but I want to call special attention to what Green Trails United Methodist Church in Missouri is doing. Instead of creating a completely separate service for people with special needs, they tightened up the typical service, shortening it and making some other changes. The feedback has been positive - from those with and without special needs. They are also started a sensory-friendly service as another option, but their efforts to welcome those with disabilities - from service changes to trainings to the use of Boardmaker - is much more comprehensive and inclusive than most churches.

Churches welcoming people with disabilities and otherwise engaging with the special needs community:

• one holding an art show to benefit another organization's program for pre-teens with autism spectrum disorders
• a pastor who makes pottery and donates a tenth of the income to charities, including a speech therapy center where his son has been treated
• a church that held a sensory-friendly Halloween event for kids with special needs
• a church that is briefly mentioned in a story about individuals with autism, one of whom attends a church's friendship group
• a church hosting a day program for adults with developmental disabilities

And, finally, this presentation by Temple Grandin is very similar to the one she gave at the Accessibility Summit at McLean Bible Church earlier this year. I found it helpful, and I think you will too. (Be forewarned, though, that it's over an hour, so make sure you have the time to watch it!)

my sessions and notes from Inclusion Fusion 2011

I had the privilege of presenting two sessions at Inclusion Fusion, and you can find the links to the presentations (up through TODAY, and rumor has is that Steve will be making an announcement later today about if/how you'll be able to access the sessions after today) below, as well as the notes.

Common Misconceptions in Special Needs Ministry

• The description: As more churches engage in special needs ministry, we need to take time to dispel some the most common myths. In this session, we’ll discuss common misconceptions, and you’ll leave with practical tools and tips to use at your church. Myths and half-truths that will be discussed are (1) disability ministry is a children’s ministry endeavor, (2) you don’t need to bother until you have someone with special needs come to your church, (3) you must use one particular model, (4) you need a special education professional to run it, (5) it’s just too hard (or, the flipside, “it’s easy”), (6) it’s just another program, (7) it’s all about ministering to people with disabilities, (8) it’s optional, and (9) it’s about people with disabilities.
• The session: Click here
• The notes: Click here

Disability, the Sanctity of Life, and the Church

• The description: In Psalm 78:6, we are instructed to share the works of God with children, “that the next generation might know them, the children yet unborn…” Church leaders are motivated to engage in disability ministry because we desire to include those with special needs in our congregations, both the current generations and those to come. However, when we consider Psalm 78:6 as well as the call in Matthew 25 to care for “the least of these,” we must recognize that the individuals with disabilities who are most vulnerable among us are those yet unborn. In this presentation, we will examine Bible verses about the sanctity of life and unpack the ramifications this has for both our understanding disability and our reaction to the rates of abortion of babies with disabilities. Practical ideas for showing the sanctity of all life in your church and to your community will also be discussed. The intended audience for this session is all Christians, not just those currently engaged with the disability community.
• The session: Click here
• The notes: Click here

Finally, I have agreed to speak at two large ministry conferences in 2012, and I'll be sharing more details about those later this week and next week.

Tomorrow I'll be posting the weekly round-up of links related to disability ministry! As usual, if you see one you think I should include (or even if you write one you think would be helpful to others!), shoot me an email: shannon [at] theworksofgoddisplayed [dot] com.

From my friend John Knight...

Yesterday on his must-read blog he wrote:

According to the World Health Organization World Report on Disability Fact Sheet there are now one billion people with disabilities in the world, or about 15% of the total population of the earth.

The church has plenty to do, here and around the world!

Amen.

You don't have to be an expert; just be willing to do something

A couple weeks ago in Beijing, a two-year-old girl named Wang Yue and nicknamed Yueyue was "crushed by two vans...and then ignored by 18 passersby as lay bleeding on the street." She died on October 21 of organ failure as a result.

A similar case from New York City in 1964 is used as a case study in psychology courses. Kitty Genovese was murdered, and while neighbors either heard or saw her as she was stabbed, no one called the police.

Those 18 people who passed by Yueyue as she lay bleeding in the street and the neighbors of Kitty who heard her screams and saw her murder didn't have to fix it. They didn't have to perform surgery to save them. They didn't need any special expertise to help those who were bleeding.

They just needed to do something instead of walking away.

You don't have to know all of the answers either in order to welcome people with disabilities into your church. You just have to do something.

Resolve that you won't turn people with disabilities away if they come to your church and that your church won't be a stumbling block to those who need a place in God's community of believers.


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If you haven't joined us already, come visit me and 20+ other speakers at inclusionfusion.org, a free webconference on special needs ministry! And, due to the technical glitches due to high demand yesterday, it has been extended through MONDAY. (And, don't worry, the glitches are fixed now!)

what does it mean to INCLUDE people with disabilities?

One of the points I bring up in my Inclusion Fusion session (which started TODAY, so CHECK IT OUT!), Common Misconceptions in Special Needs Ministry, is that it's not too hard, nor is it easy. It's worth it.

To help demystify this whole idea of inclusion, let's see what our friend Elmo has to teach us about the word "include." (Nope, not kidding. I have two little blessings around the house, a two-year-old son and a four-year-old daughter. Sesame Street happens around here.)



See? It's not complicated. It's just a willingness to invite others to join us. It's a commitment to be churches rather than Christianized country clubs. 

Granted, Elmo amd Mila were include for moralistic reasons - you know, the whole "it's the right thing to do" rationale. As believers, we have a better reason. God sent his one and only son to earth, and Christ lived the perfect life we could not live, died the sinner's death we deserve, and rose from the dead that we might live with him forever. As a result, you and I are invited into the family of God... or, you could say, included in God's family. To be redeemed by Christ and to be adopted as sons and daughters by God to share in the inheritance of Christ, that is the ultimate inclusion.

We don't seek inclusion for all people because it's the right thing to do. Just as we love because he first loved us, we include because he first included us.

It's not too hard. And it's not easy. But it is worth it, and it is right.

Have you signed up for the FREE Inclusion Fusion disability ministry webconference yet?

If not, here's another good reason.



And here's the post about my sessions, and the link to register FOR FREE. It starts TOMORROW.

because I serve in disability ministry, I know

That the “emergency” button on the elevator just calls to the front desk, not straight to any emergency departments. (I do understand the button has to be low in case someone falls, but still. Not easy when we have fast kiddos who love buttons and are working on impulse control.)

That disability is mentioned in 40 of the 66 books of the Bible.

That our team consists of amazing volunteers who I hadn’t met until I began coordinating our ministry and probably wouldn’t have met otherwise – for each of them, I am blessed.

That carpet cleaner isn’t easy to find in the church, especially right after a child vomits.

That you can’t trust the quality of walkie talkies that no one has used at the church in more than a year. They won’t work.

That even when the walkie talkies work, I’ll forget I have one and choose to text or yell down the hall, much to our intern’s disapproval. (Sorry, Kelsey!)

That we don’t have outlet covers in some of our classroom. (Working on that one!)

That God’s design for each person is good and glorious, even when it isn’t always clear to us.

That one South Park episode is about the exclusion of Timmy, who I think is supposed to have cerebral palsy, from the church. (If you're wondering, it's season 4, episode 9, titled "Do the Handicapped Go to Hell?")

That our elementary children’s ministry director is a better shot than any of our team’s pastors, if I recall correctly. (Yes, our last family discipleship team summit included guns. We’re in the South. It happens.)

That there are other folks around the country who are just as passionate about this as I am.

That there are more churches who haven’t yet realized that their church is inaccessible to many adults and families.

That God is moving within his body in great ways.

To tap into the knowledge of some of those other folks who are just as passionate as I am, join me for the Inclusion Fusion websummit on special needs ministry, starting TOMORROW. Register and check out the speakers and find out when you can join us for live chats and learn about the Twitter chat by clicking on any of those links!