One if by Land, Two if by Sea

Boston

The land of patriots, puritans, and preachers.

I'm here for theEC conference (Council of Exceptional Children) - a 6000+ crowd of special educators. I'm also representing NACSPED -- the National Association of Christians in Special Education, as well as exploring how our small Christian school can make a contribution in our local community.

During free time, I've seen nearly 400 year old historical items, Ben Franklin's parents grave, Paul Reveres grave, the old churches.

I've seen 300 year old cathedrals with full color digital print missional banners waving in front.

The church keeps re-packaging its message for a new world.

Boston probably isn't known now for its puritans or preachers now. But let me tell you of the new breed of preachers -- Christians in special education.

Somewhere along the line we Christians got it in our head that only the preacher can do ministry. Somewhere we forgot that the church is people not a building we go to.

One PHD psychologist with experience in behavioral issues in autism said he was a Christian, but how could he use his faith with his training. He was astounded that he could actually ask the pastor if there were problems with Johnny in the SS class. He walked away coming up with a list of what he might be able to do -- to impact his community.

Stories after stories.

light bulbs came on.

Then I heard the testimony of the year.

Friday night, we went to dinner with Erick Carter, author of Including People with Disabilities in Faith Communities. Dr. Carter is professer at the Badgers house - University of Wisconson, did his PhD at Peabody Institute / Vanderbilt in Nashville (the place for a special ed doctorate) and his undergrad at Wheaton. Furthermore, the book was published by a secular printing house.

But this almost didn't happen.

You see, Erick, like many 19 year olds, was failing out of college, arguing with his parents, was not a Christian and needed a summer job.

So he signed up for a camp counselor position. When he got there he was assigned to the disability group. He almost left, but decided to stay. During that camp, the persons with developmental disabilities began to teach him about Christ. He became a Christian, and changed his journey.

The fork was half way to my mouth. I said -- BACK UP. Who led you to Christ? He repeated his answer -- persons with developmental disability.

That part's not in the book.

Look up at the tower, the lanterns are flashing... the new preachers are coming, and they have disabilities.

All Cracked Up

Eggs. Nope, I'm not talking about Easter.

In sign language, there is a sign for eggs. At least I presume that my daughter taught me the correct one. With hands together, the movement looks like one is cracking an egg.

Today, she cracked eggs with me. She had already gotten the carton out of the fridge, opened up the drawer to get a mixing bowl and was ready to go for it.

This time I let her.

Carefully, she tap-tap-tapped the egg on the glass bowl, cracked it open and then put the egg shell away. 7 eggs later, she was done...and there was no mess. Together we mixed them, scrambled them, and fed everybody breakfast.

She knew what she needed to do, and did it successfully.

Yeah, I'm probably overprotective, I always step in and take care of it. I guess she knew how to do it by watching me.

And here I'm the one telling pastors to let people with disabilities step forward and serve, and minister, and be part of the church.

I don't think most churches are against people with disabilties, they are just overprotective. Maybe its time we relax, and let people engage in their gifts. Afterall, they've been watching us.

Together, we can all be cracked up.

Am I getting Younger Yet?

This week has been fun. First, there's Easter -- He is risen indeed. Second, there was no school, yeah! Third, So Cal District Council happened in Anaheim with Mark Batterson and Reggie McNeil. Fourth -- Got the Knotts Berry Annual Pass, and Finally, volunteered to take the youth on a video scavenger hunt.

you see my goal this year has been to get younger... I got a facebook, a my space, and I'm hanging out at youth group.

What does this have to do with disabilities?...I'll get to it.

Our first mistake was to only have a couple video cameras, so it ended up being 20 boys vs 20 girls. The guys all headed into a parking lot to start. Within 30 seconds the LA County Sheriff's were asking what we were doing. (Note to self: Best not to do something in a gang shooting hotspot)

I'm 15-20 years older than anyone else and it's not even my event. My mind flashes a number of scenarios. The youth pastor stated what church we were with and what we were doing. The deputy asked if we knew another deputy... and we did. He sang "bad boys" with us, flipped on his siren and we got it on tape.

But here's my point. We made a deliberate move to integrate the church, welcome youth, welcome people with disabilities, and welcome the neighborhood. We became incarnational and missional, and made our school the same way.

Last year, my school chapels included speakers from 3 major disability organizations. We put together a Habitat for Humanity event in conjunction with the sheriff's. The local Five-Oh, knows that we are the place to send people for help.

This next generation is key for the disability community. The generation of noblesse oblige is gone. The ones that took to heart the messages of JFK and Dr. King are retiring. And the bulk of them don't know what to do with today's young kids.

Yet this is the generation which wants to see real religion, do it, feel it, be it, not only believe in it and be empowered by the Spirit. That's why the CIT program of Special Touch is critical. Because the call of Christian Compassion and the power of the Spirit, when combined are unbeatable.

Oh yeah... the girls did even better than we did and won.

Reflections on AG Disability Paper

The AG published an opinion paper on disabilities nearly 8 years ago. Yet a small sampling of AG churches show there is not many with full fledged ministries. Of course, the AG also has a paper on healing, and yet many churches don't have a healing ministry.

In other forums, I've argued against some of the stances of other position papers. I would presume there are those that can articulate an argument against this one as well.

Many would presume that positions on healing and disability are mutually exclusive. After perceiving the lack of both of these ministries, I would probably argue they go hand on hand. After all, can't the same God who uses healings to bring people to faith through a demonstration of power, also use those with disabilities to bring people to faith through a demonstration of patience?

Read the paper, and then check out a local disability ministry near you.
www.specialtouch.org

-- Marvin

It's Training Time

In the next few months, I'll be busy. Training others, Getting Trained, and Training others some more. In Education, we call this professional development. In the church, we call it discipleship. Discipleship has become news again in the Christian Community, rather the lack of it. Discipleship and Spiritual Disciplines go hand in hand. Spiritual Discipline without Fruit is useless.

My friend Chris Huertz chose to pursue incarnational ministry with the poorest of the poor in India. The organization he founded is now present around the world. What is the relationship of discipleship and incarnational ministry?

In the next few weeks, I will be challenging congregations & pastors alike to step out of comfort zones and become incarnational with disability ministry.

Feel free to contact me if you are interested.

My Schedule --
March 3-7 -- Southern California Sections (Assembly of God)
March 8 NACSPED Conference -- Azusa Pacific University - Azusa, CA
March 24-26 SoCal Assembly of God District Council - Anaheim, CA
April 2-6 -- Council of Exceptional Children Conference - Boston, MA
April 10-12 -- Special Touch Expose, Waupaca, Wisconsin
April 21-23 - NorCal Assembly of God District Council
May 28-30th -- AAIDD Conference -- Washington, DC

Special Touch Camp finally coming to SoCal

It's been 4 years since I first met Charlie Chivers at a CCPD conference in Indianpolis. We are glad to finally see a Special Touch Summer GetAway Disability Camp arrive here in Southern California. Thanks to the SoCal District of the Assemblies of God, the cost for the 1 week camp is only $395. That's unheard of folks! A typical day camp costs between $150-$200 out here.

I have attended camps in both Wisconsin and Minnesota. I served as a one-on-one caregiver once. It's an amazing experience. You would think a parent of a child with disability might get bored, but it was refreshing to my spirit too!

I've looking forward to coordinating it this year. If you would like to help out, contact me.

Summer Vacation - Disability style

It's not often I get to take a vacation, so I thought I would take 3 weeks this year. Traveling with a special needs child for an extended period of time (13 states, 5,600 miles in a car seat) can be very trying. My last trip, one year ago was driving a Handicapped Accessible van with a friend to a disability camp. Since then, my eyes have become attuned to looking at camps, state parks, hotels, and parking lots with a critical eye. As much as has been improved over the years, much more still needs to be done.
Silver Dollar City, in spite of its hills, was very accomodating. Indianapolis was very good, especially its children's museum.

It's been a while

Ok, so it's been a year since I wrote anything. Probably because I don't like to write much anymore. Maybe I should do it more often. Someone also told me, that even if no one read this, I'd at least remember what I did in my life.

Since I checked in last, life has changed. I've traveled more than ever, met more people with disabilites who have become friends. I've laughed and gotten angry at others who are insensitive and rude.

By the way, if you want to have a volunteer experience of a lifetime, check out the weeklong camps that Special Touch (www.specialtouch.org) does during the summer. I spent a week last June in Wisconsin with them.

September was Washington DC. The Summitt for Full Participation was a great get-together of people with disabilities, providers, parents, etc.

I just returned from Montreal's Social International Summit for Social Inclusion. Meeting people from other countries who are tackling disability issues is always amazing.

The title of this blog is supposed to be about Theology & Ministry in the Church. So the next post should address that. If you can't wait, check out www.faithability.org. Chris always has good stuff there.

If you want me to address any specific questions, let me know. Until later, Peace.

Book Review

Book Review

Christian Examiner Article

Rayne Ministries provides disability resources for churches
By Sue Sailhamer
CHRISTIAN EXAMINER
Marvin and Teresa Miller have a big dream for their little daughter. They hope that someday she will be welcomed as a full participant in her local church and have an opportunity to serve others in her community of faith. Their daughter, two-and-a-half-year-old Lillian Rayne Miller, has Downs Syndrome.Standing in the way of their dream, they believe, is a church culture that is largely under-educated and under-equipped to help the developmentally disabled and their families. It is a status quo the Millers hope to change. The couple launched the Rayne Project, a multi-disciplined collaborative effort to further develop the theologies of disability and create strategic programs in the local church and community.“We’d always felt a call to the ministry but doors were closed,” Teresa said. “Our second daughter was born and God opened up the door and said, ‘here it is.’”As the Millers began exploring a variety of state and local resources available to help their daughter they realized that churches were largely left out of the network. The Rayne project is a way to change that.As directors of the project they desire to help churches share resources with each other and their community. The project’s educational arm, the Rayne Education Foundation, is charged with studying the theology of special needs and forging collaborative relationships with all levels of the educational system. Rayne Ministries will focus on the development of programs and resources for the local church.“If anybody has a call to be accessible, it is the church,” Marvin said.The Rayne Project supports the National Organization on Disability’s Seminary Project and sees it as a critical step toward helping pastors to be aware of their entire congregation.Marvin, who has his Master’s of Divinity degree from Fuller Theological Seminary, is quick to acknowledge the Rayne Project is just taking shape. He hopes the project will eventually become his full-time endeavor.The Millers are not alone in their efforts to make the local church a more hospitable place for the disabled. Joni and Friends, founded by Joni Eareckson Tada, has been dedicated to accelerating ministry to the disability community since it began in 1979. Joni and Friends has developed a national network of area ministries and partners to help mobilize and equip local congregations to minister to those with special needs. The ministry Web site also offers an extensive list of resources.Progress reportedAnd, while the vast majority of evangelical churches may not yet be equipped to accommodate the needs of the disabled, a growing number are. It is never an easy task.“Working with people with disabilities is uncomfortable, it’s an unknown,” said Connie Hutchinson, director of Disabilities Ministry at the First Evangelical Free Church of Fullerton, Calif.. “It’s not an area of ministry people are able to jump into.”The ministry veteran recommended churches recruit volunteers for a specific time period rather than asking for an ongoing commitment. She said it is helpful when special-needs families call before bringing a disabled child to give the church an opportunity to be ready.“People need to realize that a church is a church and most people working there are volunteers,” she said. “The church is not a social agency.”Yet, Hutchinson is sympathetic to the difficulty facing families dealing with special needs.“It’s hard work to come to church with a disabled child,” she said. “It’s not worth the effort if you don’t feel welcome.”Those who do minister to children and families with special needs often find an unanticipated blessing that accompanies the task. It is a simple truth anyone can discover.For more information, visit the Web site rayneproject.org or joniandfriends.org.Published by Keener Communications Group, March 2005
All site contents copyright © Christian Examiner™
Christian Examiner™, P.O. Box 2606 El Cajon, CA 92021 • 619-668-5100 • Fax 619-668-1115Email: info@christianexaminer.com • Web site: www.christianexaminer.com