The Importance of Christian Community

Posted on January 30, 2011 by Dr. G

During the portion of my life when I experienced the opportunity to travel the country extensively to conduct lectures and roundtable discussions for my medical colleagues, one of the added benefits was the opportunity to meet people with whom I formed an almost immediate connection as a result of the faith we shared in Jesus Christ. I enjoyed the experience of being part of a large, extended family with half-brothers, half-sisters and cousins everywhere, all of us related through our connection with Jesus.

While I’d like to think that there’s some formula we could bottle for creating that sense of community with our fellow Christians whenever we need it, my experience says it’s not so simple. I could probably do a detailed Bible study and come up with a list of essential conditions for Christian community but the two necessary ingredients that immediately come to mind are authenticity and a willingness to put Jesus first.

In recent weeks, I’ve become acutely aware of how much I need and enjoy the company of other Christians who care about the same things I do. It’s hard to go back into the world and deal with messy stuff without it once you’ve experienced it.

This past week, I was out of town for two days for a Key Ministry team meeting and in-person meetings with two ministry leaders I’d become familiar with through websites and Facebook. I felt as if a weight was being lifted from me pulling into the entrance of the Cincinnati Vineyard campus for the team meeting with our colleague, Harmony Hensley. We always have fun with Harmony in developing plans to (in her words) “achieve total world domination on behalf of Jesus.” We laughed, we worked, we planned, we ate and one team member cried, presumably in honor of Cincinnati native and new Speaker of the House John Boehner.

The next day, our team had the privilege of meeting Michael Chanley, the visionary family ministry leader who developed CMconnect.org, a social networking site designed to facilitate the exchange of wisdom and strategy among pastors and leaders passionate about sharing the Gospel with kids and families. Michael has also authored the book Collaborate, a compilation of perspectives on the growing family ministry movement within the church.

In my world, many of the “thought leaders” wouldn’t think about spending a morning with a group of junior colleagues for brainstorming, but that certainly wasn’t the case with Michael. You couldn’t ask to meet a servant leader more dedicated to the concept of Christ-followers coming together and sharing their gifts and talents for the benefit of God’s kingdom. We’re very much looking forward to contributing to the resources he’s assembling through CMconnect.org and tapping into his wisdom on an ongoing basis.

Later on Thursday, I met Jeremy Collins, a visionary young ministry leader who is the developer of Pajama Conference, a resource to enable ministry staff and volunteers to receive cutting edge training at low or no cost through streaming video from the comfort of their homes. Jeremy has created Pajama Conference while serving full-time as the Children’s Ministry pastor at Bethel Harvest Church in Lexington, KY and spending lots of time with his wife and two boys. We’re privileged to be participating in the inaugural Children’s Ministry Telesummit organized by Jeremy and scheduled for this coming April.

I had a great time for two days hanging out with my team and two authentic leaders with common ministry interests and passions. On my way back home, I couldn’t help but think of the families Key Ministry hopes to see connect with local churches. I can’t imagine what it would be like to struggle with the burdens and challenges presented to parents of kids with disabilities without the ability to connect with other people with similar interests, passions and faith in Jesus Christ. I wouldn’t want to think about what it must be like to have been given gifts and talents for the purpose of expanding God’s Kingdom but have no church in which to use those gifts together with other believers.

I appreciate how blessed I am to have had churches where I’ve been able to learn about God and enjoy the company of other Christians, the opportunity to help others to experience the same through Key Ministry, and teammates and colleagues with whom to share the adventure.

Posted in Inclusion, Resources | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Why is the Local Church So Important?

Posted on January 23, 2011 by Dr. G

For the better part of the last two months, I’ve been investing much of my time and energy with other leaders in my local church working through some messy emotions, longstanding hurts and broken relationships that have been impediments to our church in ministering as effectively as we could to our friends and neighbors. As I write this post, I’m about to leave for yet another early morning breakfast with another church leader as we seek to discern what God wants us to do next. Working through this stuff is almost (but not quite) as frustrating as being a Cleveland sports fan…unlike Cleveland sports fans, final victory is certain for followers of Christ. Nevertheless, it seems as if I ask  why I’m putting myself through this on a daily basis.

This just popped into my head…For those of us who are parents, we all have times when our kids are melting down, when they do things that make zero sense, when they make decisions or go through struggles that we lose sleep over. Yet, when we step back and think about the good times, the experiences of pure love or joy we’ve shared with them and the opportunities to see something of God through them, the bad times are certainly worth it. We’re all broken, all imperfect, all self-centered and all of us sometimes harbor the wrong motives. But through the church, God takes a bunch of messy, self-centered, broken people and with a lot of grace, He mixes it all up and often creates something wonderful that reflects upon His glory and provides a blessing to His creation.

I put up with all the messy stuff because there’s stuff the church can do together that I could never do on my own. The church provides an opportunity to merge my gifts and talents with those of others to accomplish work of lasting significance. It offers a place where my kids can have an opportunity to learn about God while serving others, while connecting with adults they can turn to for wisdom and influence at those times when they may not feel comfortable approaching my wife or myself. The church has provided a place where I’ve met people who’ve greatly enriched my wife and myself, including the majority of folks who are part of our Key Ministry team.

That’s why I’m getting up too early tomorrow morning for yet another meeting. That’s why we do what we do with churches through Key Ministry. I want my friends and neighbors and their kids to learn about Jesus and grow in faith in Him and have the opportunity to use their unique gifts and talents to do stuff of lasting significance to honor God. That’s also why you haven’t seen as much of the blog as I would’ve liked to offer lately.

 

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Book Review: Reclaiming Adoption

Posted on January 17, 2011 by Dr. G

Book Review: Reclaiming Adoption

Dan Cruver (Editor), John Piper, Scotty Smith, Richard D. Phillips, Jason Kovacs

I found a Facebook page for Reclaiming Adoption while doing updates for Key Ministry. Reclaiming Adoption is a product of an organization, Together for Adoption, established to mobilize the church to care for orphans by providing gospel-centered resources that explore our adoption in Christ and its profound implications for the global orphan crisis.

The authors of the book explore the topic of adoption from a Biblical perspective and offer a theological underpinning to the burgeoning adoption movement in the American church. They explore Paul’s teaching on vertical adoption, God’s adoption of sinners, as a foundational component of missional involvement with the world and juxtapose his teaching with our cultural understanding of horizontal adoption (human adoption), which was rooted in Greco-Roman legal practice.

I found the book to be a relatively easy read on a topic in theology I’d never heard discussed in a sermon at church. Paul was the only writer in Scripture to use the term adoption. The principal author explores the four passages in which Paul refers to adoption to explore crucial events in God’s story of redemption.

Dan Cruver states “The ultimate purpose of human adoption by Christians, therefore, is not to give orphans parents, as important as that is. It is to place them in a Christian home that they might be positioned to receive the gospel, so that within that family, the world might witness a representation of God taking in and genuinely loving the helpless, the hopeless, and the despised.”

In a later chapter, Jason Kovacs discusses adoption as a visible demonstration of the Gospel and challenges churches to consider encouraging adoption as a witness to their surrounding communities. He briefly discusses the importance of equipping children’s ministry, small group ministries and financial ministries for the task of supporting the needs of families within the church who adopt, but my clinical experience suggests that most families who adopt children with significant emotional, behavioral or developmental disorders don’t have churches with the resolve and resources to offer the ongoing supports necessary to maintain the family’s participation at church and equip the parents for their role as their child’s primary faith trainers.

John Piper discussed the costs associated with adoption and touched on the suffering experienced by many parents who adopt…something I’ve witnessed firsthand. In an earlier post, this blog addressed the importance for churches to adequately consider the potential impacts of adoption and foster care for families called to such ministry. There are enough good organizations and trainers to help churches prepare for the challenges posed by adopted and foster children that any church willing to take on such a ministry should be able to access appropriate resources and support.

At Key Ministry, we look forward to the opportunity to serve churches called to establish adoption and foster care ministries, as well as the opportunity to introduce churches to other like-minded organizations with experience in ministry to families of kids with special needs. We believe that adoption ministries are likely to to have greater Kingdom impact if Christians involved with such ministries form relationships with their brothers and sisters in the church with expertise in children’s ministry, youth ministry, family ministry and disability ministry.

To purchase or download Reclaiming Adoption or to read an excerpt of the book, click here. The book is an excellent resource for staff, volunteers or parents in churches contemplating adoption ministry or other missional initiatives.


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Autism, Vaccines and Dr. Wakefield…follow-up

Posted on January 9, 2011 by Dr. G

Thursday’s post on the paper published in the British Medical Journal outlining the misrepresentation of data in Dr. Andrew Wakefield’s 1998 study suggesting a link between the MMR vaccine and autism resulted in a record number of hits to the blog-80% more than our highest day on record.

In my day job, I spend lots of time with kids and parents who experience intense emotion. Nevertheless, I was taken aback by the intensity of emotion from parents who are convinced that the MMR vaccine contributed to the development of autism in their children. I think it’s only the second time I’ve been “defriended” on Facebook.

I’ve been kicking this issue around in my mind since Thursday in an attempt to learn lessons for the next time a hidden disability-related story is the focus of great media attention. Here are a few thoughts:

1. It’s important that those of us advocating for the inclusion of families of kids with disabilities in the church not allow disagreements like this one to distract us from the ultimate goal…helping more kids and families to connect with churches where they can come to know Jesus Christ. There are so many incredible developments occurring within this movement that we need to anticipate that those opposed to the reestablishment of God’s Kingdom will do anything to undermine the effectiveness of the churches and ministry leaders involved. One of the enemy’s favorite tactics is to sow division and disunity. Let’s anticipate the attacks and not let disagreements about the causes or treatments of specific disabilities to sidetrack our ultimate mission.

2. Any development that draws attention to pain experienced by families of kids with disabilities and results in the church reaching out to those families in love will be used by God for good. You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.

3. While we don’t want disagreements over the causes and treatments of common emotional, behavioral or developmental disorders to distract us from our primary goal, children’s and student ministry leaders should have a solid understanding of current assessment and treatment methods. Parents will frequently turn to pastors for help when they suspect their kids may be in need of professional help. The church can provide an invaluable service in these situations by directing families to the most appropriate resources. I’ve seen lots of situations in which well-meaning church staff have done more harm than good with referrals to facilities or professionals promoting treatments that haven’t been shown to be safe or effective.

Church leaders are frequently approached by members or community groups seeking permission to use the church’s facilities for outside events…lectures, presentations, support groups, etc. When a church is approached about hosting such an event, leaders need to be aware of  any controversies that could compromise the church’s reputation and influence in the community. Our teammate, Harmony Hensley, shared this as an example for church leaders to contemplate:

Let’s say your church was scheduled to host a seminar for members on financial planning to be led by the CEO of Enron in the weeks after news of their accounting practices hit the media. Would you go ahead with the event?

While it’s critical to not allow controversies to divide us, it’s also important to be aware of issues that hold the potential of damaging the credibility or reputation of the church or ministry initiatives central to the church’s mission. Our primary mission at Key Ministry is to serve churches. Given the professional experience, contacts and background of  a number of our ministry team members, we have an obligation to educate the Christian community when the reputation of the church or the health and safety of children are at stake. We’ll try to speak the truth in love, but we will speak the truth.

Clarification: I’d like to emphasize a point from one of my wise friends. This person commented that ministry volunteers should not engage in conversations with parents about treatment controversies and they shouldn’t offer advice to parents affected by autism or other hidden disabilities. Such advice often leaves parents frustrated when it conflicts with recommendations from treating professionals.

Posted in Autism, Key Ministry | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

What Do Vaccines, Autism and Dr. Wakefield Have To Do With Christianity?

Posted on January 6, 2011 by Dr. G

“Followers of Jesus are required to pursue truth wherever it leads them.”

Dallas Willard

Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.

John 8:32 (NIV)

Yesterday’s British Journal of Medicine detailed the specifics of how Dr. Andrew Wakefield and his colleagues in England misrepresented data in his 1998 paper (subsequently retracted by The Lancet) claiming a link between the MMR vaccine and rapid onset of symptoms of autism.

After posting the link to the article earlier today on the Key Ministry Facebook page, I caught some flack from one of our followers who has two boys with autism who found the tone of the post a little insensitive…it probably was. I thought I owed her a little more than the standard brief response to a Facebook comment as to why I was so bent out of shape about this study, so here goes:

Truth is absolutely central to our Christian faith. Truth invariably points us back to the person of Jesus Christ.

I don’t see any disconnect at all between my identity as a physician/researcher and my identity as a follower of Christ. When I was at the child psychiatry meetings a couple of months ago sitting in on the presentations of preliminary neuroimaging and genetic research into conditions like autism and ADHD, I couldn’t help but marvel at the extraordinary complexity with which we were made. The intricacy of the human brain could only have come about under the influence of an incomprehensible intelligence. I can’t not think about God and His magnificence as I learn more about the design of His creation!

I had the honor of serving for six years (2001-2007) on the Program Committee and New Research Subcommittee of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP). The Program Committee reviews all of the research submitted for presentation at the Annual Meeting and makes determinations as to the scientific merit and relevance of the information presented to 5,000 physicians and researchers from around the world. Under the leadership of Dr. Bennett Leventhal, Dr. Larry Greenhill and others, the Academy very intentionally “raised the bar” in terms of the quality of research in the child and adolescent mental health field. I learned more about critical thinking in my first weekend on the Committee than I had in med school, residency and fellowship put together. I’ve witnessed firsthand how the processes in place for vigorous peer review of research with appropriate disclosure of potential conflicts of interest leads to discoveries that guide us in helping kids with serious emotional, behavioral and neurodevelopmental disorders and their families. Vast improvements have occurred in the quality of the studies being conducted, transparency of funding  sources and availably of study data, especially studies in which the hypothesis tested wasn’t proven to be true with an appropriate degree of certainty. If I’m committed to seeking truth, the truth, when I find it, is going to reflect something about the character or glory of God, or have some use in restoring his Kingdom through providing comfort or healing.

By accepting the incredible privilege of calling myself a follower of Christ, I also recognize the responsibility to present myself to others in a a way that reflects positively upon Him. In practical terms, that means reflecting excellence in the quality of assessment and treatment I provide to the kids and families served through my practice, the research we do, the interactions I have with other professionals, the manner in which I serve in our church and hopefully, in the quality of the resources and services Key Ministry provides to church staff and volunteers. As a result, the work I did with AACAP, the work we do in our practice (teaching/research/clinical care), work peer-reviewing studies…the work I do should be worship…participating in God’s plan to make things right again and redeem His creation.

I become intensely frustrated when I see Christian parents and families accept unproven theories and treatments, investing time, money and hope in approaches that less likely to be of benefit to their kids when proven alternatives are available. The reasons for this are complex and beyond the scope of this post, but I’m angered when kids and families who are my brothers and sisters in Christ settle for second best. After all, we’re the children of the King!

So…if Jesus is “the way, the truth and the life,” what’s the nature of something that’s demonstrably not true?

Coming back to Wakefield’s study, there were major problems with the methods used in recruiting patients to participate in the study, described in the retraction to the Lancet article. There appeared to have been attempts to obscure the source of funding for the study (trial lawyers) or the potential for financial gain for Dr. Wakefield and his co-authors by providing services to lawyers based upon the results of the study. The paper in BMJ suggests that this study was plagued by more than poor design and study methods, but represented a deliberate attempt to deceive readers.

Fiona Godlee, editor in chief of the British Medical Journal, summed it up in her editorial:

“Clear evidence of falsification of data should now close the door on this damaging vaccine scare.”

Continuing with the editorial:

“The Office of Research Integrity in the United States defines fraud as fabrication, falsification, or plagiarism.13 Deer unearthed clear evidence of falsification. He found that not one of the 12 cases reported in the 1998 Lancet paper was free of misrepresentation or undisclosed alteration, and that in no single case could the medical records be fully reconciled with the descriptions, diagnoses, or histories published in the journal.

Who perpetrated this fraud? There is no doubt that it was Wakefield. Is it possible that he was wrong, but not dishonest: that he was so incompetent that he was unable to fairly describe the project, or to report even one of the 12 children’s cases accurately? No. A great deal of thought and effort must have gone into drafting the paper to achieve the results he wanted: the discrepancies all led in one direction; misreporting was gross. Moreover, although the scale of the GMC’s 217 day hearing precluded additional charges focused directly on the fraud, the panel found him guilty of dishonesty concerning the study’s admissions criteria, its funding by the Legal Aid Board, and his statements about it afterwards.14

A purposeful deception occurred that led to widespread resistance to child immunization in cities and towns through the UK. (Rates of immunization in the US never dropped to levels associated with a significantly increased community risk). As a result, it appears that hundreds of kids experienced symptoms of a highly preventable illness, some are likely experiencing chronic disabilities because of the effects of measles, and at least one kid died. Can you think of anywhere else you might have read about a purposeful deception leading to death?

When most of us experience adversity, either personally or through the experience of someone we love, we desperately want to know WHY. As a physician, understanding why guides me in developing a plan to address the problem. Because of our human nature, we’re wired with a need for control. As a parent, knowing why helps us to take steps to protect our kids from bad situations or outcomes. Knowing why gives us a framework for interpreting or understanding the meaning behind the daily struggles we experience or the struggles our kids experience.

Consider the story of Job. Much of the book centers around the process Job went through trying to identify a reason for his suffering, with the assistance of some well intended, but insensitive friends who were clearly challenged in their capacity for discernment. In Job’s case, he never found out why. It’s unsettling for families today when their understanding of why is subsequently shown not to be true. This happens all the time when families come to our practice and leave with a different diagnosis and treatment approach than the one they’d been working with for years. No doubt it also happens when families leave our practice in search of a new answer.

Just because I want something to be true doesn’t mean that it’s true. As Christians, many of us try to put God in a box by picking and choosing the attributes of God that we like and dismissing or ignoring the attributes that make us uncomfortable. For example, I’d like to believe that everyone is going to be in Heaven with Jesus someday, but that’s not what Jesus taught.

In some ways, it would be pretty cool if Dr. Wakefield’s claims had been true. It would be nice if we could identify a preventable cause for autism associated with an environmental toxin manufactured by companies with very deep pockets to compensate families of kids affected with the disorder for the costs of effective treatments. It’s just not true.

Admittedly, I’m not as knowledgable about autism as I am about ADHD, mood disorders and schizophrenia, but as best as I can tell, we’re likely to find at least 300 genes linked to specific traits associated with autism spectrum disorders, with hundreds of environmental factors/toxins impacting the expression of individual genes that in turn influence traits. There won’t be an “autism gene”…that wouldn’t appropriately reflect the magnificent complexity of the brains God created for us.

When we stop seeking the truth, we stop seeking God. While I failed in reflecting grace in my Facebook post, I was angered by Dr. Wakefield’s deliberate attempt to misrepresent truth, and the harm that resulted to kids and families loved by God in the process.

Our work at Key Ministry is done with the hope that the churches we serve will be equipped to welcome, serve and include families of kids with disabilities with the intent that the local church will be the instrument of God’s healing and restoration.

Posted in Autism, Key Ministry | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

What Christmas is All About

Posted on December 25, 2010 by Dr. G

Best Wishes to friends of our ministry everywhere for a Merry Christmas and a Blessed and Joyous New Year!

Here’s a Christmas classic from my youth. After watching it again, Charlie Brown’s tree reminds me a little of the kids we serve. People make lots of condescending remarks about the tree, along with the individual who brought the tree but with a little love, the tree turns out to be beautiful.

Updated December 22, 2013

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IMG_0209-2Can you help us to help churches pursue kids with disabilities and their families? For this year’s Key Ministry Online Campaign, we’re asking our friends not for money, but to share our ministry’s Facebook page with others who share interest in our mission. We’re over halfway to our goal of 5,000 “likes”! Forward this post to your friends, ask them to “like” our Facebook page, and share it with others who wish to see more families of kids with mental illness, trauma or developmental disabilities welcomed and included at church.

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Happy Birthday…To Jesus and Key Ministry

Posted on December 24, 2010 by Dr. G

Eight years ago tonight, Key Ministry was officially launched between between Christmas Eve services by seven pastors, elders, leaders and parents at Bay Presbyterian Church in Bay Village, Ohio.

As my ministry teammates can attest, I was not standing at the front of the line when God was passing out patience. It’s interesting to me to contemplate the way the Bible juxtaposes the need for us to respond to the opportunities God provides us to draw attention to His Son, Jesus, with the way the Christmas story demonstrates God relentlessly executing His plan to redeem the world through millions of people over thousands of years.

Mike Woods from Making Room had asked me yesterday on my Facebook page: “Are you sure you really work for a living, because as I read your blogs I’m wondering, “How does this guy find time to think, pray, and then write about all of this stuff?”

My response: “It’s hard NOT to be passionate about this stuff. It’s hard enough for me to get through life knowing Jesus. I can’t imagine how people who don’t have that relationship do it, much less people who have kids with the issues you and I deal with every day at work. When you look at the opportunity we have to be used by God to have an impact, it sure beats plunking myself down on the couch at night with ESPN and a bag of potato chips.”

Eight years ago tonight, I assumed that our team would have been used by God to save the world by now. Millions of kids and millions of families would be attending churches tonight where they had been introduced to Jesus, grown in faith, developed spiritual friendships and experienced opportunities to use their gifts to serve others. While we’ve seen God at work in remarkable ways over the past eight years, it feels to me like we’re closer to the beginning of the process than we are to the end. Sometimes, that’s a little discouraging.

On the other hand, when I ponder the overarching theme of God’s plan of redemption through the Christmas story and ultimately, Christ’s death and resurrection, I’m struck by the way God used life-changing circumstances of so many of the characters in the story over thousands of years to bring about His purposes.

  • Abraham: Leaves his home and journeys across much of the ancient world in response to God’s promise that his descendants would play a key role in God’s plan of redemption.
  • Tamar: Disguised herself as a prostitute when Judah chose to abdicate his family responsibilities, became pregnant by Judah and gave birth to a son (Perez) who became part of Jesus’ lineage.
  • Ruth: A foreigner, a Moabite woman who cared for her mother-in-law (Naomi) through a time of great famine, and ultimately became the great grandmother of King David.
  • David: A man after God’s own heart. Ultimately, David had the faith to pick up the slingshot to slay Goliath and set in process his ascendancy to the throne of Israel, where he received God’s promise that his line would be culminated by the Ultimate King, Jesus, who would rule forever.

None of these folks ever saw the end of the story, first in the manger at Bethlehem and later on the cross at Calvary and at the empty tomb. But they were all critical to the story. I doubt that those of us around for the beginning of Key Ministry will be alive on Earth to see firsthand the end of the story, but we’re still part of the story.

What’s really neat is that the story’s not over until Jesus returns and everyone is invited by God to play a part in the story through His church. Key Ministry is one small part of that story, used by God as a tool to help redeem one neglected piece of His Kingdom. We’re called to respond to God’s invitation with a whole-hearted allegiance and a sense of urgency because our time is limited. God orchestrates the story over centuries with a purpose that transcends time and transcends any person, organization, local church or ministry so that we appreciate His power, look to Him with wonder and worship Him.

Tonight, we’ll stop at Katie Wetherbee’s house for a Christmas party between church services. Those are her kids in the picture, when they were “part of the story” in their church’s Christmas pageant. One of their family’s tradition is cutting a birthday cake for Jesus. It’s pretty neat that our ministry adventure and Jesus share the same birthday. I’ll be celebrating tonight a Savior who not only entered our world so that we could have an everlasting relationship with Him, but invites each of us to be part of His story as He executes His plan of redemption for redeeming a fallen world.

Our ministry team is very blessed to have the opportunity to invite kids with emotional, behavioral, developmental and neurologic conditions and their families to be part of His story. Want to join us?

Merry Christmas!

Special thanks to the six other original members of the Key Ministry team who were willing to sign on to this ministry adventure on December 24, 2002 and established the foundation of the work being done today: Pastor Hu Auburn, Jan Auburn, Julie Busch Jones, Kevin Kelley, Dave McKee and Ed Moore.

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All I Want For Christmas: Online Church Campuses for Families of Kids With “Issues”

Posted on December 22, 2010 by Dr. G

Wi-Fi

I suspect advances in technology and communication over the last ten to twenty years will revolutionize ministry in ways unlike any the church has experienced since the invention of the printing press contributed to the Reformation. We’re already witnessing significant changes in the way we worship as a result of technology. For example, the rapid development of multisite churches would have been unthinkable ten or fifteen years ago. I’ve found that I can locate Scripture references far more quickly while listening to my pastor at church with the You Version app for my i-Pad than I could flipping pages in my hard copy Bible.  For an extreme example of technology in use at worship, check out the i-Pad band at North Point Community Church:

Technology affords us incredible opportunities to “rethink” how we’re sharing the Gospel with families impacted by disabilities. In a series next year, we’ll consider how technology might help us more effectively minister to families of kids with significant emotional, behavioral or developmental disorders.

Every once in a while, I get an overwhelming sense that God is communicating something important to me. Interestingly enough, the last two times He’s done this have occurred while I’ve been driving down Interstate 71 on ministry trips. Maybe I-71’s the new Damascus Road? Here’s the big, hairy, audacious idea He’s put in my brain for our team at Key Ministry (I can see the fear in the faces of our Board members as they ponder whether to keep scrolling down through the post):

Key Ministry would come beside multiple churches in assisting with the development of  multiple Internet-based campuses for families of kids with disabilities who are unable to be served through the ministry of a nearby church.

What would an Internet campus for families of kids with hidden disabilities look like? Presumably, it would share the same DNA of the church that expanded onto the web and offer all of the resources the parent church has found to be essential for ministry. Churches that emphasize small group participation as a discipleship tool might focus on interactive, online small groups as point of entry for families of kids with disabilities. For churches that emphasize service might offer opportunities for families of kids with disabilities in their local communities or offer online training in “relational respite” to equip members serve families in their neighborhoods without having to establish a “program.” Churches with a great senior pastor would obviously emphasize video teaching. There might be small groups or book studies that would be of great interest to families of kids with disabilities that lead to parents checking out other resources offered through the online church. An online study for parents of kids with disabilities on John 9 might result in the parent signing up for a study covering the entire Book of John.

Key Ministry would certainly consider developing content to build upon resources a church offers to everyone over the web. In addition to the ideas described above, other tools we could help a church develop short of a full-fledged web-based ministry include:

Apps that would allow children’s/student pastors to send parents copies topics for discussion based upon the teaching in their child’s worship service. Kids with ADHD are notoriously bad at remembering to take home their papers at the end of the worship service or remember to take the topics out of their Bible (which will probably be left in the car) once they get home. The apps could be used for other ministry communication or announcements, as well as serving as a reminder to parents of the need for them to bring their kids to church. This inspiration came from Debbie Blahnik, who does a great job of leading the Children’s Ministry at Northland Church in Orlando. (We’ll get those “Daily Ways” to the parents one way or another!)

Student Ministry on Facebook, or through streaming video on a church website. Kids with anxiety disorders often stop coming to church at transitions from elementary to middle school ministry or middle school to high school ministry. They’re heavily dependent upon electronic communication for social interaction. The light bulb went on for me one morning when I saw that a kid I had in an NIMH-sponsored study with Social Anxiety Disorder had 609 “friends” on Facebook.

I could envision a church streaming live content from worship events for teens, followed by an online discussion facilitated by a youth pastor or experienced ministry volunteer. In my practice alone, I’m aware of at least ten kids from one church for whom anxiety became an insurmountable barrier to participation in middle school ministry. Kids who struggle with church because of poor social skills or hurtful experiences with “Christian” kids may also be drawn to such experiences. I can envision churches using technology to help kids within the communities they draw from to develop a trust and comfort level sufficient to enable them to meet one another in person at the church.

Adapt Christian education materials for use by parents who are homeschooling children with sensory, attentional or learning issues who process information best through 1:1 interactions in environments designed to minimize distractions.

Key Ministry would never start an online church. Our goal is to support the ministry of the local church through helping the church to serve, welcome and include families of kids with hidden disabilities. We’d be thrilled to see more than one church pursue this concept through their web-based ministries. After all, most people are able to “church shop.” Why shouldn’t families of kids with disabilities have alternatives to explore when looking for a church? Just like us.

 


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

Counting the Cost…Is the Church Ready to Support Families Who Adopt?

Posted on December 9, 2010 by Dr. G

Is there anyone here who, planning to build a new house, doesn’t first sit down and figure the cost so you’ll know if you can complete it? If you only get the foundation laid and then run out of money, you’re going to look pretty foolish. Everyone passing by will poke fun at you: ‘He started something he couldn’t finish.’

Luke 14:28-30 (MSG)

The movement among churches to embrace adoption as an important ministry initiative has clearly gone mainstream, as evidenced by the cover story and feature articles in July’s Christianity Today. It’s good that the church is stepping up to address the need. The church was designed to be the original “safety net” for the most vulnerable in society. We’re called to “look after widows and orphans in their distress.” The church is best positioned to help break the multigenerational patterns of dysfunctional behavior that contribute to unintended pregnancies, trauma and abuse that result in kids without families to care for them. Families from the church provide an ongoing witness to the love of Jesus Christ that meets an immediate need while challenging stereotypes about Christians and Christianity in the larger society. Children who have been adopted are more likely to attend church on a weekly basis than non-adopted children.

Here’s the question on the table…Serving the needs of children available for adoption and kids in the foster care system because of abandonment, neglect or abuse are areas in which the church is called. Is the church prepared to provide the resources and supports families called to this ministry will need to maintain their current level of church involvement and effectively shepherd their kids in the Christian faith?

One of my priorities for Key Ministry as we move forward is to expand the scope of resources available to share with churches seeking to respond to the need for adoptive homes. Key Ministry developed as an extension of a large church’s attempts to meet the needs of a highly committed group of church families who were struggling in the aftermath of adopting kids from Eastern European orphanages. Some of the realities churches need to consider when planning adoption initiatives include:

According to a paper in the journal Pediatrics, adopted children are more likely than biological children to:

  • Have difficulties with emotions, concentration, behavior, or getting along with others.
  • Have a learning disability, developmental delay, or physical impairment
  • More than twice as likely as biological children to have special health care needs
  • More likely to have repeated a school grade
  • Less likely to have a very close relationship with the parent
  • Parents of adopted children are more likely than parents of biological children to have felt that the child is harder to care for than most children

We’re going to be networking with church staff and lay professionals in search of the best possible resources for churches looking to meet the needs of families who adopt. If you’re a leader in children’s ministry or youth ministry, how would your church respond if 10% of your families adopted children with the issues described above? How would that change your programming? What other resources (respite, counseling, financial assistance) would you need to develop just to meet the needs of families you’re already serving?

We also need to consider among “orphans” those children and teens in the foster care system. Here’s a link to statistics on kids in the custody of Cuyahoga County (includes Cleveland, Ohio and inner suburbs).

Kids in foster care often have histories of exposure to abuse and neglect. They often have very complex mental health needs. Dr. Julie Zito from the University of Maryland presented the following data about kids in foster care in Texas in 2004…keep in mind that use of medication has likely increased significantly (corresponding to national trends) since that time. In 2004:

  • 37.9% of kids in foster care in Texas were on psychotropic medication, compared to 7.4% of the general population
  • 41% of kids in foster care receiving medication were on three or more classes of medication
  • 72.5% of foster kids on medication were on at least two different medications.

In the next 12-24 months, I’d like to find a church (or network of churches) willing to develop ministry targeting the needs of families serving in the foster care system in their immediate area.

Families who are called to adopt or serve in the foster care system desperately need to maintain an active participation in the local church. A big part of our job at Key Ministry in the years ahead will be to resource churches to respond to the challenges of Christian families who are meeting the needs of the most vulnerable children among us.

Last revised April 29, 2012

Posted in Adoption, Families, Hidden Disabilities, Inclusion, Key Ministry, Resources | Tagged , , , , , | 9 Comments

Are We Providing a Service or Leading a Movement? (Part Two)

Posted on December 6, 2010 by Dr. G

On Friday, we examined the “Movement” God appears to be directing through followers in different places, with different gifts and in different church traditions to minister to families of kids impacted by disabilities, primarily “hidden disabilities.” Today, we’ll look at the role God may be positioning Key Ministry to play in the Movement in 2011 and beyond:

Key Ministry is uniquely positioned with the resources and connections in the professional community to help the church and ministries that support the church to understand the nature of common disabilities that pose barriers to families who would otherwise attend church. Church leaders and Christian parents who are looking to most effectively minister to/shepherd kids with hidden disabilities are confronted with lots of conflicting information from “experts” as to whether kids have the ability to control certain behaviors, whether problems are caused by genes or poor parenting and claims for effectiveness of all types of treatment interventions.

In the same way that the Christian community sends pastors and teachers to seminaries and Bible colleges to develop the ability to ascertain Biblical truths, there are Christ-followers with the necessary training, background and experience to help the church to identify “truth” when it comes to understanding kids with disabilities and the needs of families who care for them. I came across this quote from Dallas Willard that sums up a mindset that I liked enough to feature on my Facebook page:

“Followers of Jesus are required to pursue truth wherever it leads them”

As a ministry, we’ve been blessed with people who have the credentials and contacts to credibly interpret truth from both the Biblical and scientific perspectives. That we can share with the Movement. The way I see it, all truth points back to Jesus anyway.

Key Ministry is positioned to serve as a connector between people and ministries with cool ideas within the Movement. We’re positioned to connect people for two reasons…First, our organization has a unique resource-connections in the medical, research and treatment communities that can and should be a shared resource with other like-minded ministry organizations. Second, because we’ve been very intentional to this point in time about not “selling” the stuff that we provide, I don’t see us as being in competition with any ministry that depends upon payment for their services or products as a means of supporting the ongoing activity of their organizations. We can start competing when every family of a kid with a disability is actively involved with a local church and every person in those families has come to a saving faith in Jesus Christ. Until then, we all have work to do…together. If you’re not against us, you’re with us.

Key Ministry can expand its’ influence through serving and resourcing other like-minded Christ-followers and organizations in the Movement. Our thing is to help build bridges to connect churches and families of kids with “issues.” If God has positioned you where you or your organization can help connect families of kids with hidden disabilities to a local church, and if there’s something we can do to help you do that better, contact us. We’re here to serve.

Key Ministry has a unique leadership role in the Movement in equipping the church to connect with families of kids with emotional or behavioral disorders that may not widely be viewed as “disabilities” but nevertheless pose barriers to family church participation. There are a number of organizations that do great work in supporting churches in ministering to kids and adults with autism and other developmental disabilities, such as Friendship Ministries, Joni and Friends, CCFH, Making Room and the Access Ministry folks from McLean Bible Church. There are ministries like Nathaniel’s Hope and Zachariah’s Way that are very helpful to churches in launching respite ministries. The Inclusive Church is very strong on providing resources to churches to ensure they have in place the processes and protections to safely minister to kids with disabilities while caring for and supporting the volunteers to serve them. In the same way that no one local church is effective at reaching everyone, there’s nothing wrong with ministries that may occasionally overlap in the services they provide.

The service niche (actually, it’s a lot larger than a niche) that Key Ministry is addressing where we’re not aware of having lots of company are the kids with conditions like ADHD, anxiety and attachment disorders…conditions in which the disability is often less obvious, but the barriers to church participation and spiritual growth just as real. We’re happy to work with other organizations that have interest in serving those kids and their families. Those are the conditions you’ll learn more about on this blog in 2011.

After all (to quote Craig Groeschel, one of my favorite authors), if we want to reach people no one else is reaching, we have to do stuff no one else is doing.

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