Updating Ministry

In the Special Needs Ministry we have had three different classrooms for some time.  We have one for the younger and/or more fragile children, one for older/more active children and one for adults.

Our classroom for the younger and/or more fragile children, King's Kids A, has been relatively easy.  We have an incredibly committed and skilled teacher who has served for over ten years.  Her biggest goal has been to be able to share the gospel with the children and she has through music, worship, prayer, and Bible stories.  She uses nursery and preschool Sunday School lessons and combines it with interactive manipulative's to help the children stay focused and connected to her.  I love walking into that classroom because the volunteers have so much passion and compassion for the children.  The room has a sense of calm and peace to it.

Our adult classroom has been a beautiful miracle to watch.  Years ago I used to think the adults should be mainstreamed into traditional adult classes and we would adapt to help them get the most they could out of a Sunday morning.  In some aspects I think this can be effective, but the family that has formed in this self-contained classroom is something beautiful.  

We have about 10 adults, ranging from 18 to 42 that meet every week.  They have a time of crafts, worship, Bible lesson, and prayer.  They all have so much respect and encouragement for each other.  I love to go in their classroom and listen to them share about their interests, friendships, jobs and love for God.  Their faith and relationships with people and God seem so pure to me, as God intended them.

Our class for older and more active children, King's Kids B, has caused us to think a little harder.  This class is made up of the kids we have watched grow from toddlers to teens.  Their interests and needs have changed so much over the last 15 years.  

For many years I hoped that one day we would find a miraculous curriculum that would have them spellbound and they would all be able to come to the table and interact for 15 minutes over the lesson.  I wanted to feel confident that they would hear and receive the gospel.  God keeps us trusting, however.  I love that as a Christian I am not responsible for someone's salvation, I am only responsible for sharing it.  I get to trust God and the Holy Spirit with the rest!

We are still searching for the best format for this classroom but have learned a few things along the way.  There is not a magic solution that works for every student in the classroom.  The range of needs is greater than the other two classrooms and ideally, it would be most effective if we could have a greater teacher to student ratio.  We have some amazing volunteers pouring their hearts and souls into the students and they have developed some very special bonds.  The teachers work individually with the students and mainstream them as much as possible with the rest of student ministry.

Recently Heidi, our volunteer in KKA started researching the use of the i-pad for King's Kids B. The church graciously provided three of them for the classroom and an occupational therapist, Marti Smith,  met with her to show her different ways to use it effectively.  It can be used for communication, worship, Bible lessons, Gospel presentations, and as an effective reward.  She shared that "Pinterest" is a great source for finding apps to use with the students.  The OT also suggested asking the congregation to consider donating their older i-pads as they purchase newer versions.

One of the many things I love about ministry is that you don't get bored.  Ministry is constantly evolving and changing as the students evolve and change, as well as culture and technology.  We are blessed to have staff, leadership, and volunteers that continually seek to be educated and innovative in communication, but pure and simple in their love.

If you have found curriculum, resources, and tools that have been effective, I would love for you to share in the comment section.  If you have any questions feel free to comment or e-mail sntraining@hcbc.com or theboggi@aim.com.

06-11-12

My first book for the summer, out of my mind, by Sharon Draper, was very moving.  It challenged my thinking and helped me realize how narrow-minded I can be.  As a good friend shared with me, "Not being able to speak is not the same as not having anything to say."   I truly need to work harder on finding ways to communicate, other than just the methods I rely on.

Yesterday I finished my second book for the summer, same kind of different As me, by Ron Hall and Denver Moore.  It is the story of a couple having marital struggles until they started serving in ministry together at a mission for the homeless.  The book shares the story of the incredible friendship that develops between the husband and a man that is homeless.  God revealed the friendship to the wife who continually prayed and watched as God did His thing in all of their lives.  Again, I saw how narrow-minded I can be.

Both of the books revealed God's grace to me.  First of all, the grace He has bestowed on me when there are so many things about people that I just presume to understand.  He helped me to walk in the shoes of a young girl that cannot walk or speak, as well as a man that is a modern-day slave and has the challenge of homelessness.  One thing I love about grace is whenever God reveals to me another way I need to learn about grace, He demonstrates another example of the grace He has given me.

Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.

1 Peter 4:9-11

06-06-12

If you know me very well, you know that I love words.  I love them on fabric, I love them on notes, I love them on the wall, and I love them in books.  They have more power than most things in life.

I had a nice gift this week found in the book, out of my mind by Sharon Draper.  Enjoy...

Words.

I'm surrounded by thousands of worlds.  Maybe millions.

Cathedral.  Mayonnaise.  Pomegranate.

Mississippi.  Neapolitan.  Hippopotamus.

Silky.  Terrifying.  Iridescent.

Tickle.  Sneeze.  Wish.  Worry.

     Words have always swirled around me like snowflakes-

each one delicate and different, each one melting untouched

in my hands.

     Deep within me, words pile up in huge drifts.  Mountains of

phrases and sentences and connected ideas.  Clever expressions.

Jokes.  Love songs.

     From the time I was really little-maybe just a few months 

old-words were like sweet, liquid gifts, and I drank them like

lemonade.  I could almost taste them.  They made my jumbled

thoughts and feelings have substance.  My parents have always 

blanketed me with conversation.  They chattered and babbled.

They verbalized and vocalized.  My father sang to me.  My

mother whispered her strength into my ear.

     Every word my parents spoke to me or about me I absorbed

and kept and remembered.  All of them.

     I have no idea how I untangled the complicated process

of words and thought, but it happened quickly and naturally.

By the time I was two, all my memories had words and all my

words had meanings.

     But only in my head.

     I have never spoken one single word.  I am almost eleven

years old...

06-05-12

I am continuing to read, "out of my mind," by Sharon Draper.  My life has a wonderfully busy schedule so I am only able to read a few chapters at a time, but I always look forward to the next chance I have to read another chapter.

I have been a Sunday School teacher or served in another area of ministry for a long time.  I love kids...all kids.  I have been an advocate for children without a voice, but it is so important to me that all kids feel special, no matter what their abilities or disabilities are.  I try to see every child as exceptional and acknowledge that very child has a challenge.  Every child has something to offer the world.

One of my favorite parts of the book so far was when Mrs. V came into Melody's life.  Melody is in a wheelchair and cannot speak.  So far Melody has been alone with her thoughts for the most part, but Mrs. V has an incredible ability to connect with Melody.

The first time Mrs. V was introduced to Melody her father said hesitantly, "Well, Melody is, well, you know, really special."  

The response was, "All kids are special, Mrs. V had replied with authority.  'But this one has hidden superpowers.  I'd love to help her find them.'"

I love Mrs. V's response.  The reality of Melody's challenges did not stop the potential she saw in her and she acknowledged this is true of all children.  To be honest, the "superpower" in all of us, is God and whatever He empowers us to do.  Truly, the sky is the limit.  Some of my favorite Bible verses are, 

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.  Jeremiah 29:10-12


So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.  Isaiah 41:9-11


God has plans for us with a hope and a future.  He also will strengthen and help us.  Whenever I have a new student or friend, I have to take a minute to ask myself, "Am I hindering God's plan for them or encouraging it to come to fruition?"

06-03-12

This morning in church I opened my Bible to the following passage:

"Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute.
Speak up and judge fairly, defend the rights of the poor and needy."  Proverbs 31: 8,9

God seems to have me on a continual journey of understanding what it means to advocate and what it means to influence.  I have learned a lot along the way but feel more and more convinced that an attitude
of grace will make the greatest impact.

Right now I am reading a book that a good friend loaned me.  It is called, "out of my mind" by Sharon M. Draper.  It has been a great book.  It is written from the perspective of a young girl that is in a wheelchair and cannot orally communicate.  She shares all of the conversations in her head and all of the things she wished people knew about her.  I highly recommend the book!!  It certainly has broadened my view and understanding.  The young girl extends grace to all of us that have not walked in her shoes but also gives us a glimpse of the assumptions we make and the limitations we set on people.  With grace she has certainly influenced my understanding.

"When you don't get a miracle, be one." Nick Vujicic

     Tonight was so uplifting.  It was an incredible time of worship and ministered to my soul.  I had the wonderful opportunity to hear Nick Vujicic preach tonight.  Nick is 29 years old and was born, for no apparent reason, without arms and legs.  As a child he continually prayed that God would give him arms and legs.  He prayed for years and was very discouraged as kids teased him in school.  He soon realized though, "What is the point of being whole on the outside when you are broken on the inside."  He later prayed to receive Christ as his Lord and Savior.

     Nick shared the powerful verses:

Jeremiah 29:11 - "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future."


Philippians 4:13 - "I can do everything through him who gives me strength."


Philippians 1:6 - "...being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."

     Nick was very honest about his struggles but he was also passionate about his love for Christ.  At times he questioned God about why he was born without limbs, but he also trusted God.  Nick has an amazing platform because of his physical limitations.  He travels around the world speaking to youth in particular to encourage them to trust in Jesus Christ and trust Him with their future.  He addressed the issue of teasing and bullying and said, "Do you tease people?  If you are, you do not know the love of God because you are teasing God's kid."  I loved that part!
     The phrase he used that stands out the most to me, however, is, "When you don't get a miracle, be one."   We may not fully understand the plans God has made.  We may have to wait awhile for our miracle, but we can be one starting right now.

     I encourage you to visit, www.lifewithoutlimbs.org

May 1, 2012

     I fondly call this school year, "The Year of the Butterfly."  After our class traced, cut, glued and wrote on thousands of butterflies you would think we would take a break, but it continues to blissfully be, "The Year of the Butterfly."
     We have had four caterpillars in our room, watched them build their cocoons, and now have watched the beautiful butterflies emerge.  We set them free yesterday, including the wounded butterfly.  The kids wanted to pray over him and sing, "Fly, little butterfly" as he left us.
     The kindergarten class had about 60 monarch butterflies in their classroom and they were gracious enough to share them with us by putting them in the hallway.
     Today we watched a presentation on YouTube called, "The Beauty of Pollination."  If you love beautiful photography and videography you might want to watch it. (The beauty of pollination
www.youtube.com).  The kids loved it and asked to watch it several times.
     I keep thinking about pollinators and how as believers, and as an advocate for those with disabilities, we are "pollinators" so to speak.  We have the opportunity to share the gospel with those around us and encourage others to minister to our friends with disabilities.  I am watching the children in my classroom continue to share what they have learned about how to be a friend to someone with a disability and I find it inspiring.  Their excitement, compassion, and support is as strong as ever.