Love Your Neighbor
What do I do? This is the question that has kept going through my mind last week as I have seen so many families struggling. I’ve read the Facebook posts of my African American friends and my heart has wept with them.
I am a middle aged white male that lives in an agricultural area that is 96.7% Caucasian. This makes me feel like I should be the last person to speak on this matter but when you see injustice you can’t remain quiet. When your friends are hurting, you don’t ignore it.
I am going to step out on a limb here and share what I’ve learned about inclusion based on my experience as a dad of a child with special needs. I’m not pretending to understand the depth of the pain that people of color are experiencing and I’m not saying that the pain or injustice is equal.
As a special needs dad, I remember the disgusted looks when our son melted down in public. The comments and the whispering under the breath. I’ve seen the public make fun of those with disabilities. Kids calling other kids with developmental disabilities names and parents turning kids away so they wouldn’t have to feel uncomfortable around the nonverbal child.
The sad thing is that this is not just limited to public settings. I can share story after story of families who were told their child was not welcome at a church because they were “disruptive” or the church didn’t know how to come alongside them. I can share story after story of families of kids with disabilities that have completely walked away from the church because of how badly they’ve been hurt.
Perhaps this is your story.
In Matthew 12, Jesus was asked what the greatest commandment was. He replied that the first is to love the Lord your God with all of your heart, soul, mind and strength. He went on to say that the second greatest command is to love your neighbor as yourself.
As I look back at the period of time in our lives mentioned above, what our family would have wanted and what many of the other families we talk to would have wanted is to be loved and to have their children be loved.
It is hard to love someone as yourself if you don’t know them.
In that season of a few years where things were especially rough, we only had one couple sit down with us and ask us how we were doing. They then just sat there and listened and listened and listened some more. They didn’t offer advice. They didn’t go into fix it mode. They didn’t make promises.
They loved us by listening.
So back to my original question. What do I do? I can love my neighbor as myself and I can do this by listening.
Written by Jonathan McGuire
Jonathan McGuire is the father of two sons and two sons and the Co-Founder of Hope Anew, a nonprofit that comes alongside the parents of children impacted by disabilities and special needs on a spiritual and emotional level.
You can follow Hope Anew on Facebook HERE. Hope Anew has launched the Hope Anew Online community and would love to have you be a part of it! You can learn more about it at WWW.HOPEANEW.COM.