Through the Roof
The Lord is taking my life and the ideas that I have about ministry in a little bit of a new direction. I am pretty excited, but pretty overwhelmed all at the same time.
I am learning that this is how God works... when the job is bigger than you, and you really do not see how it will all come together, He has you right where He wants you!
Recently, as my husband and I have dealt with some learning disabilities with our daughter, it has become more apparent to me that the special needs population is not really addressed at church. There is one Sunday school class for young children with special needs, and a class with older men, but no real program outside of Sunday morning and nothing for older children. The Lord began to show me things that I really could not ignore.
The first thing I realized is that I have a special education degree that I am currently not using with anyone outside of my home. The ideas that I have as a mom helping Caroline with her school needs came from the education that I have.
The second thing that I realized is that there are children who are being under served or falling through the cracks all together because their parents do not know where to start when it comes to meeting their needs. Imagine bringing home that perfect baby only to realize that he or she is not perfect by this world's standards. Where do you even begin to find help? If their pediatrician isn't aware, or doesn't see the signs that things are not quite right, the child can go for years without help because parents don't know where to start.
The third thing that I realized was that our church is falling behind in reaching out to this population. We do not have a place for these children to hear about Jesus and we do not have a place for parents to come and be fed spiritually. If they can't leave their child in a class they will not be fully fed and ministered to. This is a real problem in the church and it just isn't ok!
The Lord began to show me that He has something planned for me and our church and so we are looking into training options for parents, teachers and volunteers. We are looking at how we can improve the classes that we do have and how we can develop new classes to address these needs in our community.
There is a story in the Bible where Jesus heals a man of his blindness and the Pharisees questioned him about the healing. When the man and his parents claimed that Jesus was the one solely responsible for the healing the Pharisees had him removed from the church, but JESUS Himself went and found him. He not only healed him, but He ministered to the man and his family when the church would not.
I fully believe that is what Jesus would have us do. Go and minister to those who really do not have a place to call their own in the typical church setting. Praise the Lord this is changing across our nation. The special needs population is the largest unchurched population in America because they have never really had a place. Churches are beginning to realize this need and they are beginning to reach out.
This week, my friend, Amy and I met with a man from Joni and Friends. It was so awesome to see him roll into the meeting in his motorized wheelchair. His mission is to help churches help those who can not help themselves. It is awesome to see his heart. The ministry, called Through the Roof, is based on the story of the three men who lowered their friend on a mat through the roof of a house so that he could be with Jesus. This is his heart. To bring those who can not come on their own to the feet of Jesus so that He can touch them, heal them, and save them.
I can not wait to see what the Lord has in store. I am a little nervous, but I am trusting that the Lord will provide for our needs. They will be many! Volunteers, resources, training... that will all come with time and prayer. We will start small, but we must start! It is going to be awesome to see the Lord pull His people together for this purpose and I am trusting and praying for His perfect will.
Matthew 8:17 says, " This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah, "He took up our infirmities and carried our diseases." He is still in the business of healing, carrying and loving. How do I know this is so? He does this for me every day! And if He will do it for me He will do it for the children.
I am learning that this is how God works... when the job is bigger than you, and you really do not see how it will all come together, He has you right where He wants you!
Recently, as my husband and I have dealt with some learning disabilities with our daughter, it has become more apparent to me that the special needs population is not really addressed at church. There is one Sunday school class for young children with special needs, and a class with older men, but no real program outside of Sunday morning and nothing for older children. The Lord began to show me things that I really could not ignore.
The first thing I realized is that I have a special education degree that I am currently not using with anyone outside of my home. The ideas that I have as a mom helping Caroline with her school needs came from the education that I have.
The second thing that I realized is that there are children who are being under served or falling through the cracks all together because their parents do not know where to start when it comes to meeting their needs. Imagine bringing home that perfect baby only to realize that he or she is not perfect by this world's standards. Where do you even begin to find help? If their pediatrician isn't aware, or doesn't see the signs that things are not quite right, the child can go for years without help because parents don't know where to start.
The third thing that I realized was that our church is falling behind in reaching out to this population. We do not have a place for these children to hear about Jesus and we do not have a place for parents to come and be fed spiritually. If they can't leave their child in a class they will not be fully fed and ministered to. This is a real problem in the church and it just isn't ok!
The Lord began to show me that He has something planned for me and our church and so we are looking into training options for parents, teachers and volunteers. We are looking at how we can improve the classes that we do have and how we can develop new classes to address these needs in our community.
There is a story in the Bible where Jesus heals a man of his blindness and the Pharisees questioned him about the healing. When the man and his parents claimed that Jesus was the one solely responsible for the healing the Pharisees had him removed from the church, but JESUS Himself went and found him. He not only healed him, but He ministered to the man and his family when the church would not.
I fully believe that is what Jesus would have us do. Go and minister to those who really do not have a place to call their own in the typical church setting. Praise the Lord this is changing across our nation. The special needs population is the largest unchurched population in America because they have never really had a place. Churches are beginning to realize this need and they are beginning to reach out.
This week, my friend, Amy and I met with a man from Joni and Friends. It was so awesome to see him roll into the meeting in his motorized wheelchair. His mission is to help churches help those who can not help themselves. It is awesome to see his heart. The ministry, called Through the Roof, is based on the story of the three men who lowered their friend on a mat through the roof of a house so that he could be with Jesus. This is his heart. To bring those who can not come on their own to the feet of Jesus so that He can touch them, heal them, and save them.
I can not wait to see what the Lord has in store. I am a little nervous, but I am trusting that the Lord will provide for our needs. They will be many! Volunteers, resources, training... that will all come with time and prayer. We will start small, but we must start! It is going to be awesome to see the Lord pull His people together for this purpose and I am trusting and praying for His perfect will.
Matthew 8:17 says, " This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah, "He took up our infirmities and carried our diseases." He is still in the business of healing, carrying and loving. How do I know this is so? He does this for me every day! And if He will do it for me He will do it for the children.
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