HEALTHY FAMILIES FOR ETERNITY

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Individuals with disabilities and their families need the compassion shown by the men in this Bible story. Had the story been written today, more than likely it would have included women. As such, all who are a part of the church are called to come into an awareness of the needs of the those who live with a disability. Contemporary research affirms that faith is an integral part of the human experience. For many living with a disability, faith is elemental in their lives and they consider their faith tradition as a stabilizing force (Speraw, 2006). Many people with disabilities report using their spiritual beliefs as an adaptive resources and as a way of finding meaning for their disability. Like other believers, they too, want to glorify God with their lives and want opportunities to be of service within and outside of the church. People with disabilities are just like non-disabled people: “we are the same, but different”. Moving Beyond Compassion “If you judge people you have no time to love them.” Mother Teresa While people with disabilities and their families see the church as essential in the development and nurturing of their spiritual beliefs, many believe that the church is limited in its ability and readiness to minister to their needs. Thus it is essential that the church move from compassion to finding ways to better meet the needs of the members with disabilities of the family. We can approach this from a family systems theory perspective. A system can be defined by an identifiable whole that is made up of several interrelated parts (Balswick and Balswick, 2014). Looking at the church through a systems approach allows us to see the dynamics at work in the (church) family and how they influence others in the family. Families are best understood as interconnected and interdependent that cannot be understood in isolation. Every member has a responsibility to the “family” as a whole. So how can the church family better meet the needs of our “family” members who live with disabilities and their families? How do we move beyond compassion and become more inclusive of all in the church family? We begin by following Jesus’ example of ministering to the disabled—He noticed them, prayed for them, and ministered to them. Let’s visualize a framework of moving from awareness, to compassion, to ministry/family inclusion. SEMINAR 57 Illustration 1 MINISTRY/FAMILY AWARENESS COMPASSION INCLUSION We start with acknowledging one another; become aware of our similarities and differences. Some people with disabilities believe that non-disabled people are afraid of people with disabilities—afraid of their differences and afraid of making a mistake in relating to them. Awareness allows us to step outside of our comfort zone and acknowledge others in our surrounding. It is a fallacy to believe that we should ignore another person’s differences— that is not diversity sensitivity. There is nothing wrong with telling someone that they have on a pretty yellow shirt even though your shirt is white. It becomes egregious if we treat someone differently because they have on a yellow shirt or if we ignore them because CREATING AWARENESS OF MEMBERS WITH DISABILITIES IN OUR CHURCH FAMILY
HEALTHY FAMILIES FOR ETERNITY REACH THE WORLD 58 they are not wearing the same color shirt as one’s own. In acknowledging others, we affirm them and begin to celebrate the similarities and differences between us. From awareness, we are moved to compassion. Compassion does not mean pitying or feeling sorry for the other person. Compassion is feeling empathy for another person who is dealing with challenges along with feeling a deep desire to help alleviate their suffering. In some ways our compassion actually pushes us to awareness which in turn pushes us back to compassion. Ellen White says in Acts of the Apostles, “Divine love makes its most touching appeals to the heart when it calls upon us to manifest the same tender compassion that Christ manifested.” Our compassion then moves us to ministry or family inclusion. Once we become aware, and show compassion, ultimately we need to transition into ways in which we can accommodate members with disabilities in the family and/or better meet their needs. When Jesus healed the Church Service Offering Collection Children’s Story Increase Awareness, Compassion, Inclusion Illustration 2 Ministry to Members with Disabilities Allocate Funding disabled man, He told him, “rise, take up your bed and go home” (Luke 5:24). The newly healed man immediately did what Jesus told him and then went on to “glorify” God. He and those who brought him went on to share with others the “extraordinary things” they had experienced (v.25). The same should be true of those of us who profess to be Christians. When we have had an encounter with the Savior, we are thus propelled, not only to share the good news of God’s healing powers and deepen our faith, but to put our faith to work Ministry to Members with disabilities of the Church Family Our intention in this seminar is to create awareness, deepen compassion, and begin thinking about the special needs of members in our church family who are disabled in some way or another. We are not giving steps on how to start a disability ministry, however, this resource can serve as a precursor to starting a disability ministry in your church. Illustration 2 is a mind map that can serve as a launch pad for ministry to members with disabilities and their families. Training Pastors, Members Provide Resources Larger Font Sign Language Better Seating Ramps Elevators
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