that's what they said {disability ministry round-up 6/4/12}

Broadway Christian Church offers summer program for children with disabilities

Vacation Bible School has long been a favorite summer tradition for children in Columbia. Many local churches offer programs for kids of all ages. But for the first time this summer, children with disabilities will have their very own VBS program as Broadway Christian Church expands its popular All God’s Children adapted Sunday school curriculum to meet the summer need.

Modesto church offers Bible school for special-needs children

June is the traditional kickoff month for church-run vacation Bible schools, which usually include games, crafts, singing, skits, snacks and Bible stories.

But what if your child can't run in the relay games, can't see the crafts or hear the stories? What if large crowds of kids — some VBS programs draw more than 500 of them — overwhelm your mentally challenged child?

Willow Creek Community Church: Disability Ministry

"All people matter to God; therefore, they matter to us." This founding belief is a cornerstone at Willow Creek. Believing that we are all made in the image of God—made to know Him, love Him, and connect in community together—Willow is honored to serve those with special needs.

Letting People With Special Needs Minister

Special needs adults, teens, and middle schoolers are a volunteering gold mine too--often overlooked. We pour time and effort into ministering to special needs kids, but frequently forget that they have countless gifts to give. As special needs kids "age out" of children's ministry, it's important that we give them opportunities to feel like part of the body of Christ. Just like the rest of us, people with disabilities need to feel loved, valued, and important. We all need a purpose-special needs youth and adults aren't any different.

Christ Community Church offers special needs program for kids with special needs

"Access 18:16 offers a continuum of support to best meet the individual needs of each child," Walls said. "While some children may be best suited for the Kingdom Kids Connect classroom which is a self-contained classroom, many children with disabilities thrive among their peers in the church's children program. In these cases, a buddy is assigned to provide comfort and consistency to the child and helps them be included into our children's program. Additionally, in the Connect classroom, we are doing reverse mainstreaming where we have children without disabilities to be a apart of the Connect class. This has been a very successful and rewarding classroom model for all participants."

Autism and the Fractured Family - Making a Choice

Families with autistic children face these decisions all the time. Do you take the child to a wedding? A family function? A vacation that removes them from the familiar or their routine? Heck, forget the big trips and events. Do you take the child to their sibling’s school play? To church, synagogue, or the mosque for services? To that birthday party that the whole family was invited to? When is it important for the family to do something together, for that autistic child to be pushed out of his comfort zone (because life is messy, life cannot always be routine), and when is it not worth it?

Why Facebook Removed Pictures of a Baby

Two thousand years of art have celebrated the image of another mother holding the wounded body of her son. Rather than being offended at images of suffering, let us embrace those who suffer, and mourn with those who mourn—even on Facebook.

An Unexpected Ministry: The Elisha Foundation

Mission work doesn’t always lead to overseas travel. That was the case for Justin and Tamara Reimer who founded The Elisha Foundation in 2005. After the birth of their son, Elisha, and his diagnosis of Down Syndrome, the couple knew that they had a new mission. The mission became The Elisha Foundation, located in Bend, Oregon, it’s one that would keep them in the United States and affect the lives of many children just like Elisha.

Hire Staff Proactively, Not Reactively

(Pastors) >> Prepare >> (People) >> Minister >> (Each Other)

Parents Say, "Special Needs Ministry Not Necessary"

As a father of 3 boys, each with special needs, I’m drawn to other parents who are in a similar situation as mine. That’s the reason why 85% of my acquaintances on my FB pages are parents of special needs kiddos. I was interested in how many of them attend church even if it does not have a special needs ministry

We must warn the enemies of our children - God is coming

As I’ve explored here before, there is a horrible, unbiblical, idolatrous line of thinking that says only people who are strong and have some sort of usefulness really deserve to live. The evil is breath-taking.

Finally, want to know where to start in disability ministry? Use bulletin inserts like this church did to survey your members (and don't you love the idea on the reverse side for volunteer recruitment too?).