SPECIAL FRIENDS MINISTRY

One of the primary outcomes for each team member in our Special Friends Ministry is to develop relationships with each and every child and adult with special needs that we minister to. The process that we use to develop a relationship is called C3 (Comfort, Confirm, Challenge) and is derived from the many interactions between […]

Finding more people to serve in a special needs ministry is an on-going endeavor. If you serve in special needs ministry and you’re reading this I’m sure your response to my very enlightening opening statement is: “duh!” I wanted to share a new idea that I’m implementing in order to create opportunities for more people […]

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 […]

In Pastor Lon Solomon’s book, Brokenness, he describes how his daughter’s disability changed hi s family’s life.  Jill’s seizures began in infancy, and after surviving more than 6,000 seizures, she is severely mentally and physically impaired. “The impact of Jill’s sickness has been devastating for us,” says Solomon.  “There was physical and mental exhaustion…then there […]

“Without exception…all try their hardest to reach the same goal, that is, joy.”  St. Augustine It is easy to think “If I could just get a new car, a bigger house, a better job, or more money, then I’ll be happy.” We tend to view happiness as a commodity attainable by wealth. However, as the […]

My wife had just returned from the grocery store with $300 of food items stuffed in easy-to-carry plastic bags piled in the minivan.  She did the shopping, my job was to carry them in.  Determined to make as few trips as possible from the minivan to the kitchen, I grabbed as many plastic bags as […]

This idea requires very little preparation, making it easy for you to teach your child an important lesson about “joy” even when circumstances are difficult, boring, or challenging. For this idea you’ll need a buzzer.  One of those really cool “That Was Easy” buzzers from Staples would be perfect!  However, any type of noise-maker will […]

Kenneth Dodge tells about an 8-year-old boy named Frank. Frank had a date with his father to go fishing one Saturday. They were going to fish the whole day. On Friday night he had everything laid out. He was ready to go. But on Saturday morning he awoke to discover that it was raining cats […]

This month our virture is Joy (“Finding a way to be happy in all circumstances because God loves me”).  Joy can often be found in our obedience to the Lord in the midst of our circumstances.  Here’s something practical that you can do to help your child understand the meaning of joy. Throughout this month, […]