Everybody belongs. Everybody serves.
Disability
Worship 
lynn
Staci
Stanley & Monica
I had the privilege of taking a unit of Clinical Pastoral Education at Pine Rest Christian Mental Health Services. At the conclusion of our time together, each of us students wrote a "final evaluation". Here are some excerpts from mine.
Every time a rampage killing happens, like the recent horror in Las Vegas, people ask “Why?” For an answer, we need to look at ourselves and the kind of society we have created.
As we held Dylan, we saw his face fully for the first time as he took his final breath. Our private drama has been repeated in hospitals around the world. So why has Charlie’s case caught the attention of the world?
But just what is “independence”? How much would I eat if I only ate the food I produce myself? Probably very little. Would I drive a car if I had to build it from scratch?
Frequently I’ve heard people evaluate the benefit of ramps and hearing loops based on how many people with disabilities would use them. Now I understand why that kind of analysis misses the point.
What’s going on here? Surely marketing and sales, yet something else is afoot.
When life hits us with painful trials, our hearts plead that God tell us why. The Bible teaches there are many reasons God allows suffering. But, like Job, the person suffering might not know why...
Seeing Ralph in the Intensive Care Unit, I was astounded by the peace with which he faces life, death, and the severe limitations his pain and poor lung condition have imposed on him.
"What gives consistency to people is to know that they are loved. To love is not to do things for people, it’s not to tell people what to do, it’s to reveal. What do we reveal?"
One time, I gave my elevator speech of what Disability Concerns is about to a fellow Christian Reformed pastor. He responded, “Well, if any of those people come to my church, I’ll send them to you.”
Communion and Disability
I am the mother of a special needs child with a cognitive impairment. This presents various blessings and challenges for our family. One of the things that we have wrestled with for years, is whether or not our child would ever partake in communion.
This entry in the Gospel of Weakness blog wonders what our eyes say about our acceptance or rejection of people with disabilities.