How to Get Your Pastor Excited About Disability Ministry

At some point in our childhood, most of us heard the words,

“Eat your veggies!”

Millions of kids dutifully fork broccoli, spinach, and brussels sprouts onto their plates. And why? Because they’re obedient to their parents! But by adulthood, many of us find that the healthy foods we were reluctant to eat as kids actually taste pretty good. We choose them because we like them!

Churches often follow a similar trajectory when it comes to disability ministry. While churches might begin a “disability ministry” out of obedience to passages of scripture like 1 Corinthians 12, what sustains ministry is the joy the entire church experiences from saying “yes” to God!

So why are so many churches seemingly unwilling to say “yes” to disability ministry?

We’re glad you asked.

One couple in the church regularly arrived each Sunday accompanied by several adults with intellectual disabilities. This couple would pick their friends up, drive them to church, sit with them during the service, and hold a brunch afterwards to discuss what they’d learned. The faithful service of this couple impressed Curtis, and he blessed and celebrated their ministry from afar.

In Curtis’s words, “If they were out of sight, they were out of mind.”

It wasn’t until after Curtis and his senior pastor sat down with a couple of our staff members from Joni and Friends that the church became actively engaged in serving individuals and families impacted by disability. Joni and Friends offered to do an audit of their facilities, helping the church think through their physical accessibility. The auditor came, clipboard and measuring tape in hand. Curtis walked up, introduced himself, and asked him what he was doing.

The auditor smiled and said, “I’m not primarily here to measure doors. I’m here to measure hearts.”

This simple comment left a deep impression on Curtis, communicating a truth every church needs to understand:

Accessibility is a matter of the heart, not the measure of a doorframe.

This began a process of transformation that has spanned years. Steadily, as the leadership of Calvary grew in their affection for people with disabilities, things were changing at the church.

Previously: When people with disabilities had made noise during the service, it was viewed as disruptive and perhaps a little startling.

Now: The whole church understands those noises are an expression of joy! Those cries of excitement are often acknowledged from the pulpit and celebrated by the congregation.

Previously: Respite care had been viewed as daunting, expensive, and difficult.

Now: They hold monthly trainings to accommodate all the volunteers who want to participate. (The executive pastor among them!)

Every time there is a Buddy Break respite event at Calvary, Pastor Curtis arrives bright and early to volunteer.

“I wouldn’t miss it for the world,” he says. “God has wired each individual specially and we need to love them just as they are.”

He’s quick to add that while Buddy Break is the highlight of many people’s Saturday, the church is called to love and care for families with special needs in the hard stuff, too.

Developing the special needs ministry, from Curtis’s perspective, requires establishing trust.

“Hurting people often hurt people,” he explains, “but you can love them over.” Some of the families that now come to Calvary drive an hour or more each way to church. “They drive past a lot of churches to get here.” Curtis says unhappily, “Disability ministry has been nothing like we expected. It has been huge for both my heart and my smile. These other churches don’t know what they’re missing.” He goes on to say, “Special needs ministry has helped develop Calvary’s caring heart. It helps us relate up (to God), out (to our community), and across (to others in the church).”

And what does Curtis think it takes for churches to do this well?

“Go find families with special needs. Hear their stories; listen; don’t talk.”

Calvary began their special needs ministry because they were convinced that God had called them to it. And in opening their hearts and doors to people with disabilities, Calvary has also gained a new perspective on what it means to “live and love like Jesus.”

For practical help on how to approach your senior leadership about special needs ministry, or for structure and guidelines on how to build a sustainable and healthy ministry, watch the videos below. They’re part of a brand-new video series from Joni and Friends. You can find a playlist of all eight videos by clicking here.