How does the way that David welcomed Mephibosheth into his royal court challenge the way we welcome children and young people with additional needs into church?
There is nothing wrong with generous hospitality but sometimes we can overdo it or be so focussed on everything being perfect that we forget the very reason we are doing it at all.
Candles can be vulnerable, but they can also burn brightly, lighting up a room, changing darkness into light.
Catholics, evangelicals and members of other faiths attended the march. “Christians should stand up for those who are weakest and have no voice”. Police had to protect the event from a violent counter-demonstration.
Sensory Processing Disorder can mean that children or adults have under-developed or over-developed senses.
This year’s Swiss ‘March For Life’ denounced that 9 in 10 babies with Down Syndrome have no chance to live. The police had to protect the event from pro-abortion radicals.
What older generations can be great at is having a heart to help a particular child or young person, having the pastoral skills to see when they are struggling and to help them.
Much of our time as parents of children with additional needs is spent tending to their needs, supporting them. Jesus modelled this in so many ways during his ministry, and during those times that he served people he taught them too.
Jesus message of selflessness, putting others first, serving others, loving others, is counter-cultural in today’s society.
At times, additional needs parents can play many of the familiar roles of circus performers.
James’ journey through life has not been an accident; it has and continues to have purpose.
Yes, he did. He made you perfectly, he made you wonderfully.
The hardest question can be the one from a child themselves… “Why am I different?”
It should be about that genuine, heartfelt, willingness to work together to create an environment where everyone can join in.
“The Bible, a journey through the languages of the world” shows how “Western civilization is built upon Christianity, and its foundations are the Bible”, collector Pere Roquet says.
It’s not your fault that our child is Autistic. It’s not your fault that he has Learning Difficulties and struggles to communicate effectively. None of these things are your fault, or mine; they are no-one’s fault.
Never, in a million years, did we expect to have a disabled child.
What do you see when you first meet a child with additional needs or a disability?
When I’m seeing parents who are looking for tips about how to support their child better in church, at home, and elsewhere, it’s often Mum that I see.
It is important to provide a child with additional needs with someone they can trust who can help them understand what is happening, where they are supposed to be and what they are supposed to be doing.
For many of us, our child with additional needs or disability is not our only child.
The European Evangelical Alliance honours the work of a platform that offers “training of ministry workers and leadership, provision of a biblical perspective on disability, and mobilization of prayer and support”.
Members of churches often ask what one change can make the most difference, can have the greatest impact, can enable lasting transformation.
We might find ourselves washed up on the beach from time-to-time, but we and our child jump up and run back in to the surf once more to try again.
Jelena Sivulka, counsellor and founder of Hanina nada, talks about finding hope in Christ when dealing with disabilities. “God loves us for who we are. I share that with families of kids with special needs”, she says.
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