Category Archives: Hidden Disabilities

He won’t remember: Children and PTSD…Jolene Philo

Posted on October 26, 2014 by Dr. G

But very few churches talk about the babies, special needs babies, who also suffer from PTSD. Because we don’t want to believe they feel pain. Very few churches talk about children already traumatized before birth or children traumatized by direct or observed trauma.
Because we good church people don’t want to believe they remember.
Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, Hidden Disabilities, Inclusion Fusion, Mental Health, PTSD, Resources, Stories | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 38 Comments

#2…Churches should become trauma and attachment-informed

Posted on October 23, 2014 by Dr. G

So, church leaders, what can you do to become trauma- and attachment-informed and to then use that knowledge to serve adoptive and foster families well? Continue reading →

Posted in Adoption, Advocacy, Controversies, Families, Foster Care, Hidden Disabilities, Inclusion, Strategies | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 27 Comments

What keeps kids with ADHD out of church?

Posted on October 10, 2014 by Dr. G

“People in the church believe they can tell when a disability ends and bad parenting begins.” Continue reading →

Posted in ADHD, Families, Hidden Disabilities, Inclusion, Key Ministry | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

The chasm is bigger than I ever imagined…

Posted on October 7, 2014 by Dr. G

Parents of kids with mental health conditions are especially prone to be stigmatized at church because of the lingering belief among many in the Christian community that mental illness is a byproduct of sin, kids who struggle with managing emotions and maintaining self-control are the product of parents who are ineffective or indifferent and much of the mental health profession can’t be trusted. Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, Families, Hidden Disabilities, Mental Health, Resources | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Adrian Peterson, Christians and corporal punishment…

Posted on September 18, 2014 by Dr. G

Do we as a Christian community want to allow the issue of whether corporal punishment is required by Scripture to define us when the potential exists for the issue to become a stumbling block to others who might be considering the claims of Christ? Continue reading →

Posted in Controversies, Hidden Disabilities, Key Ministry | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Updated…How are kids and teens with ADHD different?

Posted on September 16, 2014 by Dr. G

Dr. Barkley’s theories suggest that ADHD is a disorder not only of attention, but of executive functioning as well. Executive functioning describes a set of cognitive abilities involved in controlling and regulating other abilities and behaviors. Such functions are necessary in initiating goal-directed behavior, suppressing impulses arising from lower brain centers, and planning future behavior.
Continue reading →

Posted in ADHD, Hidden Disabilities, Key Ministry, Mental Health | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

AWANA Conference Presentations on Slideshare…

Posted on August 24, 2014 by Dr. G

The most common message communicated to me during and after the conference was…”You’ve really made me think.” Please join me in praying that every leader in attendance yesterday will welcome one kid and one family to their Awana ministry as an outcome of our conference.
Continue reading →

Posted in ADHD, Anxiety Disorders, Families, Hidden Disabilities, Inclusion, Key Ministry, Resources, Training Events | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The relationship between anxiety and church attendance…

Posted on August 7, 2014 by Dr. G

Is it possible…or even likely that an important reason people attending church report less anxiety is that the regular experience of anxiety causes people to have more difficulty in attending church? Continue reading →

Posted in Anxiety Disorders, Hidden Disabilities, Key Ministry, Mental Health | Tagged , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

I’m not like “those kids”

Posted on July 23, 2014 by Dr. G

The kids (and their families) are exquisitely sensitive to perceptions of being “different” from everyone else. This is a key reason why they don’t fit into most “special needs ministry” models and why they’re inclined to avoid “programs” that draw attention to their differences. Continue reading →

Posted in Hidden Disabilities, Inclusion, Key Ministry, Mental Health, Strategies | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Updated: Families impacted by depression…How can the church help?

Posted on July 18, 2014 by Dr. G

Society still places a stigma on mental illness, but Christians make it worse, he said, by “over-spiritualizing” depression and other disorders — dismissing them as a lack of faith or a sign of weakness. Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, Depression, Families, Hidden Disabilities, Key Ministry, Mental Health | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment