pastor’s corner By Paul Hathcoat
LESSONS LEARNED In my time as a “Special Needs” pastor, I have worked hard to educate the church, its people, and the community around it regarding how my team and I can teach individuals with disabilities about the Bible and develop their faith. We take appropriate pride in our efforts to do just that. Do we, and do you, take the time to step back and learn from those individuals with special needs also though? Let’s talk about that, from a pastor’s perspective. Some of my students struggle to process the world and its happenings around them. Many of them have an inability to process certain specific sensory inputs that they are presented with. As I have learned, this can be a positive thing. Sin is a specific kind of sensory input to all of us. It can affect us in many ways. From holding us back from experiencing the fullness of life around us to making it nearly impossible to function, sin has a way of stirring us up inside and producing a product that is neither focused or dedicated to living righteous and Godly lives. We read in the book of 1 Corinthians, “no testing has overtaken you that is not common to everyone. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tested beyond your strength, but with the testing he will also provide the way out so that you may be able to endure it” (1 Cor. 10:13, NRSV). All individuals with disabilities struggle with the world around them in one way or another. You and I join all of humanity in this as well when it comes to the sensory input of sin. Many of the SN students at my church must try really hard to work well, communicate well, and get along with the typical students and volunteers around them. When they do, our classrooms work well, and our lessons bring life, love, and connection. It does not always work out that way though. We can all relate to this struggle to not only get along with, but to connect and team up with everyone around us. But this is part of God’s plan. In Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 we read about this idea. “Two are better than one. They can help each other in everything they do. Suppose either of them falls down. Then the one can help the other one up” (Ecc. 4:9-10, NIRV). I have
learned from my friends with disabilities that it is always worth the effort, no matter how difficult, to learn to work well with and love on those around us. Lastly, I want to share one of the most powerful lessons I have learned from my students. Said plainly and with humble honesty, I am distracted, lazy, unfocused, and unhealthy when it comes to the routines and disciplines that I know would benefit me daily. Many of the people living with disabilities that I have spent time around work hard to develop and maintain a routine in their life. I see many of my friends and students keeping track of their appointments, their medications, their therapies, their eating schedules, their exercise regimens, their TV schedules, and even their church services, religiously (pun intended). Some of them couldn’t imagine any deviation in their plans because it disrupts their prescribed flow through life that works best for themselves and their continued development. Do we do that ourselves? Do we create a routine of exercise, healthy eating, social connectedness, prayer, and Biblical study? Do we maintain a pattern of activity that promotes the things in our lives that we know to be most essential for our highest optimal function and development? I can’t say that I do, even though I really want to. I have learned from my friends with disabilities that these things should be non-negotiable vital aspects of our lives and that we should feel angst and discomfort when we DON’T do them. “A person without self-control is like a city whose walls are broken through” (Prov. 25:28, NIRV). God has called us all to healthy habits and routines in our lives. We can learn from just observing many of those around us who cling to their daily routines with passion. These are but a few of the generalized lessons I have learned in my time as a pastor and man. I am thankful for the countless examples that I have received while shepherding a special needs ministry. If you have some lessons learned as well from a child, friend, or acquaintance living with disabilities, please take a minute to reach out to us here at SNLM. May you be blessed by these lessons and by His word.
Do you have a thought, idea, or information that you would like to see in this section in an upcoming issue? Email Paul Hathcoat – phathcoat@wrcc.org.
February 2022 • Special Needs Living
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