Tag Archives: Disability Ministry

Why do kids become aggressive?

Posted on September 20, 2011 by Dr. G

One contributing factor to aggressive behavior you can influence as a ministry leader is the environment in which your kids worship, learn and serve at church. You want to consider how you can create environments that help all kids to maximize their capacity to use all of their cognitive resources for the best possible experience at church.
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Posted in Mental Health, Ministry Environments, Strategies | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Collaboration in the Special Needs/Disability Ministry Movement

Posted on August 25, 2011 by Dr. G

From my read of the Bible, we were designed by God to collaborate with one another in our worship and service. No one has all the gifts. Everyone has some gifts. The gifts and talents of God’s people were designed to work in concert with one another. It never made sense to anyone at Key Ministry to build our organization around a single leader or personality because such approaches seemed to run counter to God’s design.
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Posted in Leadership, Strategies | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

What Happens After the Benediction?

Posted on August 16, 2011 by Dr. G

So much of what we at Key Ministry, along with other special needs ministry leaders focus on is creating welcoming and inclusive environments to help families be able to attend church. But how do we come beside families of kids with disabilities and “do life” with them after the connection has been made and the families we serve are now part of our church?
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Posted in Key Ministry, Stories, Strategies | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Information Overload

Posted on August 2, 2011 by Dr. G

One of the downsides of this proliferation of ministry content and resources is the danger that ministries can get into an escalating “arms race” in which leaders feel they need to promote more and more content in overlapping social networks in an effort to be heard above the “noise” caused by the volume of social media available. There’s also a risk of churches and parents who want to start ministry initiatives becoming paralyzed by the range of resources available to them through what’s referred to as choice overload theory. I think it’s also easy for ministry leaders to get so caught up in keeping up with social media and measuring success in terms of Facebook fans, Twitter followers and website hits that we lose sight of the ultimate goal…sharing God’s love with the people around us in such a way that those people are drawn to Jesus. Continue reading →

Posted in Key Ministry, Resources, Strategies, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

Shannon Dingle…Simply the Right Thing to Do

Posted on July 24, 2011 by Dr. G

Can we still call ourselves churches if we don’t care enough about others to consider their lives and their needs? Or would it be more accurate to paint over “church” and replace it with “country club” or “social group” instead? Continue reading →

Posted in Families, Inclusion, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

How Dads are Impacted When Kids Have Disabilities

Posted on June 19, 2011 by Dr. G

Examination of contributing factors to the higher rates of depression seen among men with teen or young adult children with autism may help us better appreciate what it’s like to walk in the shoes of a father of a child with a significant disability. Continue reading →

Posted in Autism, Families, Key Ministry, Parents | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

One Family’s Story

Posted on May 8, 2011 by Dr. G

our family’s experience of a child with a disability has made me aware that the impact of the disability isn’t limited to the nuclear family but affects the extended family as well. Second, while we as the church can offer to do what we can to support families affected by disability, as a psychiatrist and as a brother, I can’t fully comprehend how the 24 hour a day, seven day a week experience of being responsible for a child with a significant disability colors one’s understanding and attitude toward God and experience of trying to be a part of a community of faith through the local church. We can do everything we possibly can to reach out to families of kids with disabilities who aren’t actively involved with church, but we also need to be slow to judge parents who fail to take us up on the offer until we’ve walked in their shoes.
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Posted in Families, Inclusion, Key Ministry, Parents, Stories | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Thinking “Orange”…Takeaway Points

Posted on April 17, 2011 by Dr. G

When church leaders consider the opportunity to minister to and influence parents and siblings who otherwise miss out on the benefits of a local church, the potential impact of an inclusive family ministry on the surrounding community becomes readily apparent. Continue reading →

Posted in Families, Hidden Disabilities, Inclusion, Key Ministry, Parents, Spiritual Development, Strategies | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Special Needs and Divorce: What Does the Data Say?

Posted on April 12, 2011 by Dr. G

New data…Older siblings who can assist in caregiving may play an important role in maintaining family stability and It’s less stigmatizing to have a child with an autism spectrum disorder than it is to have one with a psychiatric disorder. Continue reading →

Posted in ADHD, Autism, Families, Key Ministry, Parents, Resources | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 38 Comments

Thinking “Orange”…Kids With Disabilities Present the Church With a Unique Opportunity

Posted on April 10, 2011 by Dr. G

One of the reasons churches shy away from serving kids with disabilities is the concern that large numbers of volunteers may be needed for a ministry that can be labor-intensive. But what if churches could reach a large, underserved population of families in their immediate communities while offering students the opportunity to engage in meaningful ministry experiences? Continue reading →

Posted in Families, Hidden Disabilities, Key Ministry, Spiritual Development, Strategies | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment