Disability Ministry is Not Just to Those With Disabilities

Disability ministry is extremely important. Churches must be reaching out to those with disabilities. But that should not be the only goal for disability ministry.

While not taking away from the needs of those with a disability, disabilities affect the entire family. Much of the contact that I have is with parents of children with disabilities. I know from experience that it is not easy. There are all sorts of financial, physical, emotional and spiritual challenges that go with being a parent. The same is true with being a sibling.

If your church wants to become disability-friendly, you need to take a wholistic approach. Yes, provide a safe and welcoming place for the person with the disability. But consider how you can minister to the rest of the family as well. You can really make a difference.

Why Do People With Autism Stim?

If you met our son, you would find him with a square-shaped toy in a sock covered with some plastic. If you met our daughter, you would find her with a CD or DVD held up to her face. This is called stimming. What is stimming? Find out in this video.

 

The Side of Autism You Don't Want to See

We all love to see the stories of people with autism who are exceptionally bright or who have a savant ability. We are encouraged when we see people with autism who become very successful.

We need to see those stories but we need to balance them with the other side of autism.

In this video, you see a mother trying to comfort her daughter who is having a meltdown. We have had many experiences like this. It is never easy.

If you are church that wants to welcome families with autism, realize that this is one of the reasons why some parents are hesitant to attend church.

What Does an Autism Meltdown Look Like?

One of the misunderstandings about autism is that meltdowns are simply temper tantrums. An autism meltdown is so much more.

This is a good video of a meltdown that also includes the mom talking to her son about it afterwards. It is very helpful.

Living With Autism

Presented and narrated by actor Hugo Weaving, this animation looks at the key characteristics of autism as experienced by his 16-year-old nephew Ky Greenwood. The project was part of Sentis' “Great Works” program and was inspired by Ky’s father William who is part of the Sentis team. Autism Queensland is proud to support this film.

Where Do Autistic Children Belong in Sunday School?

What I'm going to talk about here is relevant to many disabilities, but since autism is my experience, I will focus there.

If you have a child with autism in your Sunday school, should you place them with other children of their age level or with other children of their intellectual level? I'm speaking here of children who are on the severe end of the spectrum, not those on the mild end.

It might be tempting to just put the child with autism with the younger children and let them watch some Veggie Tales. That might be easier, but is that the best way?

One thing to keep in mind is that it is very difficult to determine the intellectual level of a person with severe autism. Often the communication challenges make testing intellectual capabilities quite challenging. For example, many people consider our son to be "low functioning" because he is nonverbal, but in fact he is very intelligent.

I would suggest that the best option is to put the child in an age appropriate class, but with sufficient help. Never underestimate the benefits of being able to model behaviour based on peer relationships. This can be a difficult option, especially with a lack of resources, but it should be the goal.

Why You Should Attend Life to the Full

I had the opportunity be filmed for a promotion for the Life to the Full conference. I'm on the planning team for this conference and I can't recommend it enough. Watch the video below for why I think you should attend Life to the Full. Registration closes Oct. 3, so register today!

Life to the Full Conference with Stephen Bedard from Julie's Photograph on Vimeo.