I am the Lord, the God of all the peoples of the world. Is anything too hard for me? Jeremiah 32:27
Church hallways around the world are still quiet places these days. But that could be changing, as ministry in the season of COVID continues with creativity into the winter of 2021.
Until vaccines are widespread, churches remain on the lookout for ways to come alongside individuals and families with special needs, the aging and others who are vulnerable to complications if exposed to the virus. Pastors and leaders may feel like they’ve exhausted possibilities or resources for ministering with these friends. That’s what recently got me wondering about those quiet hallways.
I live in the Midwest. The winter will be long and confusing for my daughter with intellectual-developmental disabilities. Like so many people with sensory issues, Carly has difficulty wearing a hat and mittens. This limits her ability to be outside when it’s cold. Without warm and open spaces to walk and explore, her mental health will suffer anew—and, by proxy, mine and her dad’s—with fewer ways and places to spend time and reduced level of physical activity.
Carly’s capacity to cope with boredom is impacting the stress level of the whole family and the woman who helps us care for her. We all have “creativity fatigue” along with compassion fatigue, decision fatigue and just plain COVID fatigue.
Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.” Matthew 19:26
Thankfully, God put a few heads together and a plan has been hatched. This idea could be adapted into ministry opportunities elsewhere, too.
My home church is making the gym available to individual families for use during COVID quarantine. The gym space gets reserved through the office. Janitorial staff is made aware of the scheduled use and then cleans the space in between uses.
As the church works to stay within guidelines for keeping our families safe and healthy, they don’t allow combined household use at this time. But my daughter will be quite satisfied with an opportunity to spread out a little each week during this long winter, even as it comes without interaction with others outside her tiny “cocoon.”
The church is requiring that we bring our own items for appropriate activity. I’m already dreaming up ideas about different items to bring each week to keep it novel and fun for our girl (e.g., balls, dancing music, pop-up tent, fold-up tunnel, stepping pads). These things may also provide some distraction for her from the fact that she still won’t be able meander into other parts of the building or interact with staff. (Carly is an avid explorer and hugger).
Could this idea be a springboard for a similar building-use strategy at your church? You could reach a wide range of people and ages with universal needs. Whether it’s hallways or gyms, it is a safer place than the local mall. For Carly, who typically and frequently walks the wide aisles of area home improvement stores during our winters, the church offers a welcome alternative. And the size of your church doesn’t really matter all that much.
Our home church is moderately-sized. Prior to COVID, it saw about 1,100 people attending services over the course of a weekend. There is no “special needs ministry” or “disability ministry” program. Still, several individuals with disabilities and families like mine experience the ministry of Christ there. Yes, I’ll admit to praying for more intentional outreach to families like mine. But most importantly, we do know that we are deeply loved there. My church’s approach, at least for now, has remained more organic and is something simply growing into our culture at this point. We’re trusting God in the ways and timing of how ministry evolves.
There’s another long-term benefit that will likely come out of this. I expect that having Carly visiting the church building for private activities will ease her transition to being in the building within community again. We’ve worried about this transition and wondered how challenging it will be to return to in-person worship services. Carly’s self-regulation skills are still developing. She’s also extremely social and adores the worship part of our services. So, when she finally does get to worship in a large group again, it will be tremendously exciting for her. Quite honestly, she’ll likely need to be medicated before services for a time or she’ll make such loud and excited noises that sermons will be interrupted and communion wafers flung far and wide!
For now, my church’s willingness to make the building available, helpful and safe for my daughter’s unique needs feels very much like Jesus’ love to me and my family.
Lord, help us to see Your possibilities where we are inclined to see only limitations. You are so creative, Lord. And we are made in your image. Keep us empowered and refreshed by Your Holy Spirit to love well and persevere until Your ultimate healing comes.
Lisa Jamieson is a caregiver consultant, pastoral counsellor and author of popular books and Bible studies including Finding Glory in the Thorns and Jesus, Let’s Talk. Lisa and her husband, Larry, live in Minnesota with the youngest of their three grown daughters, Carly, who has Angelman Syndrome. Together, the Jamiesons founded Walk Right In Ministries in 2008, a non-profit organization building faith and community with special needs families.
