Thursday, September 20, 2007

How Do Those With Special Needs Serve in Your Church?


We often talk about serving others, and that is wonderful. But have we ever thought of serving others by helping them to serve others?

Case in point: We have a lady in our church who is blind. As we were recruiting teachers for VBS last spring, she really wanted to get involved somehow and help. So we discussed it a bit, and found out that she's very good at memorizing and is a gifted storyteller.

We typed out the Bible stories for her so that she could use her "reader" to listen to them. Yes, it took a bit more effort than originally planned, but it was well worth it. Then, we invited her to be a special guest in a different class each day. I cannot tell you how excited she was to be able to get involved. This fall, we're going to have her try it again by being the guest storyteller in each of our children's Sunday school classes.

The Bible reminds us that it is more blessed to give than to receive. Many times, someone with special needs may be on the receiving end. How wonderful it is when they can experience the joy of giving instead.

So what about you? How do those with special needs serve in your church?



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