The special needs ministry at our church has been operating for four years. In that time, we have welcomed many fantastic friends. Each of Embrace’s friends has given me, and our church family, a precious gift. It doesn’t feel fair to hoard these gifts, so I will share some of the lessons three of these friends have taught. These lessons and their teachers have changed me at a fundamental level; they are lessons we think we know until we see them lived out. I am proud to introduce you to some wonderful young people: C, D, and Little C.
1. Worship is for everyone.
“C” can be heard every Sunday during worship. His loud, joyful hum resonates through the room. C cannot speak, but he is full of excitement and praise. He loves attending church and humming along with our amazing worship team. On a typical Sunday while the pastor is preaching, you can hear him ‘say,’ “Aheh,” which I firmly believe is his Amen.
God is the only one who can know all that is happening in C’s brain, but judging by the glimpses we get, there is a man who loves Jesus, music, and trains. C is a man who worships God unapologetically in a place as close to the throne room of God that one could get this side of Heaven. He does so completely unburdened, and it is beautiful.
2. We all can know and give great love.
“D” is a precious young man with Cerebral Palsy. He has never spoken or walked independently. In the last four years, he has grown from a little boy to a young man. D climbs up on me and wants to be carried on my hip. I can manage that for roughly two minutes before I’m literally dying. Sadly, he’s not so little anymore.
D loves fiercely. He has people he loves, and three things in this world that bring him great joy: his magazines, his music, and his “P.B.&J’s.” D has loved me enough to share all of these things with me, a feat I am pretty sure only his momma has mastered. He has so little he can share; when he does, it’s a great sacrifice. I am honored to see the love of a child who would give the best things he has to someone he loves. That is rare. Don’t believe me? Ask a three-year-old to share a bite of ice cream and get back to me. The love they give you when they decide to share is a love unhindered by selfishness, untouched by sin. That is a glimpse of God’s love.
Photo credit: Mi Pham on Unsplash.com
3. All you have to do is look for joy to find it.
“Little C” attended our church with his family until they had to move two years ago. The military gives our church families to love, and then sends them off to bless others. Little C was always bouncy, energetic, funny, and kind. He loved people and his fidgets. He was primarily non-verbal, but who he was spoke volumes. He was always happy. He always had a quick hug followed by flighty feet. He was sassy and kind. I don’t think I ever saw him mad. I don’t remember one moment where his demeanor was anything but joyful. I am sure his amazing momma has seen these moments, but when he was out and about, he radiated joy. Not in big things, not in complex conversations, but in the intricate nuances of the world.
Little C found joy in life’s simplest blessings: in colors, textures, sounds, even people. Little C studied every kernel of corn he played with, and he put the hat just right on his head. He swung and watched the colors flit by. Little C taught me to find joy in the little things, the kind of joy that is unhindered by difficulties in communication, socialization, education, and more. This joy is not concerned with circumstances, but with love and gratefulness. This joy showed Little C the beauty in a world that we often mistake as too broken for joy. We are so distracted by what is true now, we forget what will always be true. In the profound words of Little C, “I like the corn, God loves me.”
Maybe we would be a little more joyful if we remembered our fallen world has beauty that God put here for us to enjoy. He shared this with us because He loves us. If we stopped being distracted, we could experience a taste of the boundless joy in knowing that God created all things, and that all things reflect the beauty of The One who created them.
These are three of the dozens of lessons I have learned in the last four years. Ask a parent of a special needs child, and most will tell you they have learned enough to write a book. They have learned real value, acceptance, bravery, and kindness. And they have learned joy. I don’t know what God will do through C, D, or Little C, but I do know this: God will do something. As surely as He has for you and I, He will do something.
I have been asked why these kids are disabled. Can’t we just pray and God heal them? I suppose we could. But if God had healed the blind man in John 9, would he have recognized the Messiah when He walked among them? Would the people that blind man touched have seen and followed Jesus? Because I am not sure they would have. Had I never met these friends, would I have known unapologetic worship, boundless joy, or unhindered love as I do now? No. My friends—and millions of disabled people—have been put on Earth with a purpose. This happened so the power of God could be seen in them, which is a word confirmed in John 9:3b. I believe that verse with all I am. One of the most precious lessons we can learn from the disabled community is to see God in someone different. I hope the abled community can do the same favor for them.
Joanna French is the special needs pastor at Flint Hills Church, Junction City, KS. Joanna and her husband Jairmie have two boys with autism. In 2017, Joanna started Flint Hills Embrace with the goal to make Flint Hills Church a place where everyone belongs. Why? Because we all have a place in God's plan.
