Creating a Masterpiece.

The more I am reading about disabilities, the more I am discovering that there are so many ways that those with disabilities contribute to life’s splendor.

I often find myself wondering about my gifts and searching for places that I will be used fully. But I think that many times I am blind to who I am. As I was reading today about people with disabilities, I stumbled across an article about students with Down syndrome, who have created paintings that are being showcased around the world. These students are not unlike me, in that they too search for things that they are good at. They found their answer in art.

The word masterpiece keeps rolling around in my head. Ephesians 2:10 says, “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” (NLT) We are God’s masterpieces. He knitted us together and fashioned each one of us with unique gifts. He crafted us with care, like these students create their paintings. He placed an ability to create beautiful art in these students. He gives each one of us different abilities; for these students it is the ability to create beautiful art. For me it is something else. But we are all the same in that we are all masterpieces. And not just anyone’s masterpiece. But the Creator of the Universe’s masterpiece. We must be quite breathtaking.

Look at these photos and see the beauty that flows forth. Think about the magnificence that God created in these people’s lives. He has done that in your life too. Just open your eyes to it.

 

Read the article at: http://www.wellandtribune.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=893473

- ≠ < (different doesn’t equal less than)

Abortion has long been a hot button in politics. Questions surround the topic. Is abortion is right? Should women have the right to choose what they will do with their bodies? Should unborn children have the right to life? When does a child have a soul? It almost seems as if people neglect to consider the repercussions for even having the conversation to begin with.

I just read an article called British Politicians told: Disabled Children Better Off Aborted. The title says it all. The issue here isn’t whether abortion is fundamentally wrong or right. It is about the stigma that surrounds people born with disabilities. Why are they better off aborted? Because they will have challenges that other people will never have to face? Because they will be different than the rest of the world? Because they have nothing to offer society? Because they are too weak to overcome obstacles? These are the messages that are being sent when people say that children who are born with disabilities are better off not born at all. It sends a message of hopelessness and unworthiness. No wonder people fear being different. We live in a world that says that if you are different, you are no good. Imagine the effect that has on children that are born with disabilities. Imagine if someone said to you,even though you were given life, others like you are really more trouble than they are worth.

We need to hold onto truth more firmly than that. God has uniquely fashioned everyone on this earth, with their own set of difficulties and strengths, and has a plan to use those things for His glory and for the good of those who love Him. Be bold and claim truth over peoples’ lives and the world will be changed by it. And maybe one day, children won’t be aborted simply because they are different.

Diminishing Fears

These days, more and more expectant parents use testing to determine what genetic defects might affect their child. When parents are told that their child is likely to have Down syndrome, 91-93% of parents choose to end their pregnancies in abortion. Thinking about the reasons that such an astounding statistic exists, it seems likely that fear is a factor that drives parents in that direction.

After reading the article: Son’s Progress Inspires Parents I got a clearer picture of what it is that parents fear when facing the thought of having a child with Down syndrome. The article tells the story of a couple’s journey through preparing for their child’s anticipated disability. Their fears were many; fears that their son wouldn’t be accepted, that he wouldn’t be joyfully welcomed into the world, that he wouldn’t have the same achievements as others.

During the pregnancy, the couple went through a mourning period. They really were mourning a death of sorts—the death of the dreams that they had for their child. In the Beatitudes, Jesus says, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” (Matthew 5:4) Because of the fall, we have things to mourn over. Because our freedom in Christ and understanding of His redemptive purpose of our lives, we have freedom to mourn the things that are broken. That includes broken dreams. And so, these parents mourned.

Then their child was born, and they rejoiced. Since then, their fears have evaporated as their son is invited to parties and develops his motor skills. They took a chance on their son, a chance that only 7-9% of similar parents take.

What can be done to encourage more parents to embrace a child with Down syndrome? Maybe more testimonies from parents of children with Down syndrome would help debunk the fears that people have about having a child with a disability. There must be a way to eliminate the statistic. We need to find it.

The Beatitudes for Friends of Someone with a Disability

Blessed are you who take time to
listen to difficult speech,

for you help us to know that if we
preserver, we can be understood.

Blessed are you who walk with us in public
places and ignore the stares of strangers,
for in your companionship we find havens
of relaxation.

Blessed are you who never bid us to ‘Hurry up’
and more blessed you who do not snatch our
tasks from our hands to do them for us, for
often we need time rather than help.

Blessed are you who stand behind us as
we enter new and untried ventures,

For our failures will be outweighed by the
times when we surprise ourselves and you.

Blessed are you who ask for our help,
for our greatest need is to be needed.

Blessed are you who help us with the
graciousness of Christ, who do not bruise
the reed or quench the flax, for often we
need the help we cannot ask for.

Blessed are you when by all these things
you ensure that the thing that makes us
individuals is not our peculiar muscles, no our
wounded nervous system, nor our difficulties
in learning, but in the God-given self which
no infirmity can confine.

Rejoice and be exceedingly glad and that
you have given us reassurance that could never
be spoken in words, for you deal with us as
God dealt with His own children.

-Author Unknown

Dancing Moves the Soul

As I have been reading about the state of those with disabilities, information about inclusive education has been overwhelming. It seems like many advocates of children with disabilities are putting all of their eggs into the basket of inclusive education, as if being incorporated into a classroom with students without disabilities is all that is needed to open a child up.

At the beginning of December, I caught a news segment on the Shimmy Club, a program that teaches visually impaired teenagers how to tango. Founded on the concept that dancing doesn’t require vision, only feeling the music, two women implemented the program in their community.

These two women have empowered the teens by helping them gain self-confidence. The teens have broken out of their shells and are now bold enough to ask someone to dance. Tango, in fact.

Imagine what could be done in the lives of visually impaired teenagers if there was a program like this in every community. The end that many are seeking, inclusive education, would greatly benefit from being paired with a program that teaches self-confidence to students with disabilities. And, as these two women have proven, it doesn’t require action on behalf of a school system or the government to make a difference in the lives of people with disabilities. It just takes a vision and the dedication to see that vision come to fruition.

What is your vision?

To read the article visit: http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/22147757/

World Disability Day

We live in a world of rallies, protests and speaking out against injustice. No longer will people sit back as children are taught to murder as soldiers in civil wars, or as young girls are being sold as prostitutes. They refuse to look the other way when millions of children are forced into labor. Hollywood has used its resources to bring attention to the injustices around the world through movies like Hotel Rwanda and Blood Diamond.But where is the outcry against the mistreatment of those with disabilities? These children are abused even in countries where there isn’t political unrest. There are about 150 million children in the world living with a disability. Many of these vulnerable children are exploited because of their disabilities. They are abandoned by their families, left without education and surrounded by a stigma of being untouchable.

But each year, December 3 marks World Disability Day. The day is set aside for those with disabilities and their advocates to demand the acknowledgement of their needs. The 2007 World Disability Day was the 11^th event and was celebrated in many countries around the world. Participants flooded the streets of Patna, India, chanting, “We don’t want kindness… we want education.” The day is also intended to celebrate those with disabilities. As one blogger wrote, “Of course, for many of us all 365 days of the year remind of our disability, so perhaps this occasion should be used to celebrate our abilities.”

Interview with the Director of Access Ministry at McLean Bible Church

In this episode, Dr. Edward Bradley interviews Jackie Mills-Fernald, the director of Access Ministry at McLean Bible Church. Her relationship with Access Ministry began originally in 1999 as a volunteer. By autumn of that same year she had joined the Access Ministry staff. In 2000, Jackie became Assistant Director of Staff and Volunteer Development for Access with a focus on recruitment, training, and overall program development. Since December of 2003, Jackie has served as a member of McLean Bible Church’s ministry staff as Director of Access Ministry and also oversees the Signs of Life deaf ministry.

Jackie is a sought after workshop presenter and consultant for churches in the development of disability ministry and creating an inclusive culture in the church.

After listening to the podcast, let us know your thoughts below. Do you have a question for Jackie? Would you like to know more about their ministry?