SPECIAL FRIENDS MINISTRY

“This group has been so helpful. I shared some ideas with a friend at work, and she was really encouraged. If it weren’t for the family support group, I wouldn’t have had anything to say,” the mother of an 11-year-old boy and a 7-year-old girl with autism said. Her beaming eyes and broad smile expressed […]

Years ago I attended a national autism conference. A lot of parents had gathered together to learn more about autism, the latest learning technology, and to bond with other parents who are traveling on the same journey. I sat alone during the keynote speakers’ presentation, among 500 other parents.  I remember looking around and thinking, […]

“The next thing I knew, he was trying to kick and bite me.”  It happened so suddenly and without notice that it caught Mary totally offguard.  “I didn’t know exactly what to do but I knew that I needed to keep everyone safe,” she added.  “It felt like the longest 15-minutes I’ve ever experienced in […]

As parents of children with special needs we’re often busy helping our child to learn daily life-skills such as communicating, social interactions, and self-help.  If we’re not careful the busyness of life  distracts us from looking for opportunities to teach our child God honoring character traits.  So here’s one easy idea that you can implement […]

Life has seasons, much like the seasonal changes we watch around us each year. Spring is like youth; summer is so much like young adulthood; fall is like the height of our careers when everything is bright and golden; and winter’s quiet snow is when our days slowly fade like daylight’s hours are shortened. There […]

A few months ago I had lunch with a friend.  The waitress guided us to a booth by a window.  John collapsed onto the bench seat.  Outside, the skies were turning dark.  Clouds threatened to bring a mid-day rain. John leads a Life Group in our church.  He’s a deacon and someone who’s also actively involved […]

Teaching a child with special needs to memorize Scripture is in many ways like teaching a child any other skill or craft. It often requires an individualized approach. Sometimes hearing a few helpful hints will be enough to support and motivate parents who want to begin teaching their child how to memorize Scripture! Our podcast […]

When I was a little boy, I thought adults had it made. They could stay up as late as they wanted, eat what they wanted, watch TV whenever they wanted, and hang out with their friends as much as they wanted. Ah, the Good Life. Somehow, the life that I now have as an adult is […]

Jesus told the story of The Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37).  One of the reasons Jesus taught this parable was in order to get people to think for themselves, there but for the grace of God, go I.  The point is that kindness and compassion come from the heart, and it is the heart where the seat of God […]

Psalm 119:11 – “Your Word I have treasured in my heart, That I may not sin against You. NASB” This one verse is probably the single most often-utilized verse people turn to when they think about why they should memorize Scripture. This verse gets to the heart of Scripture memory, but how does this apply […]