3 Reasons Special Needs Ministry Matters in the Church

It’s Sunday morning. Your children’s ministry wing is lively with stickers printing, kids heading to classrooms, parents giving hugs. 

Everything seems to be going according to plan. And then… you see him. A sweet little 4-year-old with shaggy hair & a big, toothy smile — we’ll call him Alex. He’s heading toward the preschool classroom. His mom looks anxious, wondering if she will be asked to pick up her favorite little boy in the world early again this week. 

Alex was recently diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, and his track record in kids ministry has been rocky.  Your volunteers aren’t sure how to help Alex when his sensory seeking turns into unsafe behaviors. Your staff feels ill-equipped to help teach Alex about Jesus. He usually leaves halfway through service, and you think — it’s a wonder Alex’s mom continues to try week after week. You don’t know what to do next and feel a bit hopeless. Does this story sound at all familiar? If you have an “Alex” in your ministry, keep reading, and be encouraged by the biblical picture of loving those with special needs.

1. Jesus embraced those with disabilities.
   All throughout the Gospels, Jesus encounters individuals with special needs. He steps into their lives, varying degrees of abilities and differences, and He makes it clear that they are fully a part of the Kingdom of Heaven that he came to bring. People with leprosy, blindness, unclean spirits, hemorrhaging –  you know the stories, right?!  And he didn’t just wave and swerve. He spent time talking with, eating meals with, teaching, and discipling individuals with special needs. He didn’t just tolerate disability – he sought out ways to bring healing & goodness to their lives the same way he did for all of humanity. 

2. God calls the Church to represent ALL people of the world.
   It’s estimated that 15% of the global population identifies as having a disability – that’s more than 1 in every 7 people we encounter. And yet, look around your Church community. Does it reflect that number? Most likely not. This is primarily because families impacted by special needs have a challenging time finding a church community to embrace them. 80% of families with an autism spectrum diagnosis alone do not attend church – and that is just one diagnosis! If our churches are not prepared to embrace individuals with special needs of all ages, we are choosing to not serve a large portion of the population. 

3. Individuals with special needs display the glory of God.
   When Jesus and his disciples come across the man born blind in John 9, the disciples get nosy. They want to know “what happened” that caused this man to be born blind. Did his parents sin? Did he sin? And Jesus responds that the man is born blind so that the glory of the Lord could be seen. The glory of the Lord. If you know individuals with special needs, you know that truth. The glory of the Lord is evident in the pureness of their joy, the compassion and kindness of their hearts. If we exclude individuals with special needs from the church, we are missing out on a brilliant expression of the glory of the Lord.

Special needs ministry is essential in the life of your church. Do not let your overwhelm cause you to miss out on the blessing of this necessary, life-changing ministry!