The training, content, gatherings and experiences that we’ve created for pastors, church staff and ministry volunteers produced with the assistance of like-minded colleagues serving in disability ministry have become our principal service. So much of what we’re able do to help churches welcome and support families, we accomplish by bringing together experts from other ministry organizations.
November is Caregiver Awareness Month. As someone who became one of my dad’s caregivers before I started school, I grew up thinking everyone in the world was aware of caregivers and caregiving. As a young adult my husband and I cared for a son born with a life-threatening medical condition, and his typical sibling. As members of the sandwich generation, my brother, sister, and I cared for our mother for 15 years after she was diagnosed with dementia. This explains why, when I first heard that November is Caregiver Awareness Month, I was incredulous, and I still am.
In this episode, Lauren Hickman shares her personal journey and calling to disability ministry, describing how God has guided her every step of the way to serve families impacted by disability.
In today’s episode, Sandra talks about the challenges small to normative-sized churches face in disability ministry and shares how the churches she’s been a part of have overcome these challenges.
This week Elaina, from Key Ministry, sits down with Sergei Marchenko, Lead Pastor of Chatham Bible Church, and Special Needs Parent. They discuss preparing for the holiday season, church inclusion, special needs parenting and more!
By the numbers, Linda shouldn’t be here. Everything seemed to be stacked against her by worldly standards, and still seems that way. How could bullying, struggles with education, and psychiatric hospitalizations work for His plan? In part 2 of this series from Linda Bunk, see exactly how God is powerfully using all of these struggles to minister to people in Ukraine.
A few years ago, a church leadership network where I am involved spent time in a reflection specific to the disability culture in their churches. The tool we used proved helpful in taking an honest and vision-refining look at things. My prayer is that it spurs some meaningful reflection among leaders and strengthens churches as places of belonging for individuals and families living with disability.
My children have autism. The children at our church are great with our kids: patient, kind, accepting and open to them. I am thankful, but—that is not enough. I want them to have authentic, organic friendships with people their own age. Here are four questions to help churches be places where the neurotypical and neurodivergent can grow together.
The day we received an official diagnosis explaining our daughter’s struggles, my husband and I cried. Actually, I literally wailed and groaned for at least half an hour. Carly’s diagnosis triggered a heart cry that special needs parents, families and individuals living with disability commonly understand, and can benefit the whole Church.
The buddies in our church make the gospel accessible and help our students participate in class with their peers. Like Moses and Aaron, we all need a little help to live out the Christian life and fulfill the calling God has given us! Here’s how to recruit, train, and support buddies in your ministries!
Guest blogger Tony D’Orazio shares more stories about the challenges, laughter and joys of having a fitness ministry for people with special needs. Read his recent post about his son Jake here.
Guest blogger Kristin Evans notes that it’s not practical to expect every church to be able to provide for families with special needs in every way. But she encourages churches to consider one or two ideas for how your congregation might be able to better support persons with special needs and disabilities. Here are five ways your church can prepare to love special needs families.
Over the summer, my husband Fred and I have been working through some course material from an organization which has as one of their objectives, “To help one’s family member to achieve ‘An Awesome Ordinary Life.’ ” It is so easy to lose sight of how extraordinary it is when an ordinary life is lived in faithful ways. Let me explain.
