Beyond Labels: Seeing the Beauty in EVERY Child
Do you ever feel like your child is being looked down on because of their disability or special needs? This Easter season, it's important to remember that God does not see any person as less than. Click through to our latest blog post and find comfort in knowing that God sees your child's struggles and cares deeply for them.
Written by Jonathan McGuire
Do you ever feel like your child is looked down on because of their disability or special need?
In the world, you often see a differentiation between the “haves” and the “have nots.” Those in sports are esteemed more highly than the shelf stocker at Walmart. The advice of those with the largest following on social media or YouTube is more sought after than the grandfather or grandmother up the street.
Sadly, this can even be true at churches. I hear of many parents on this journey in special needs walking through the church doors looking for community and eventually walking away because they are made to feel like their child is a burden. Congregation members treated their child as less than and not really valued.
If this is your story, I’m sorry. This Easter season, I want to assure you that God does not see your son or daughter as less than.
Here are 5 ways that we can see this in the Bible.
1. Your child is created in God's image
"So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them." - Genesis 1:27 (NIV)
This verse reminds us that every person, including those with special needs, is created in God's image and is therefore uniquely valuable and important in God's eyes.
2. God sees beyond physical limitations
“But the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.’”
– 1 Samuel 16:7 (NIV
While human beings often focus on physical appearances and abilities, God looks at the heart. He sees beyond a person's disabilities to their true character and potential.
3. God sees my child's struggles and cares for them
"The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit." - Psalm 34:18 (NIV)
As a parent, it can be heartbreaking to see my child struggle with challenges or disabilities. But I take comfort in knowing that God sees their struggles and cares for them deeply. God is close to those who are brokenhearted, and I believe that He is with my child every step of the way.
4. We are all equal in Christ
“There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” – Galatians 3:28 (NIV)
In this passage we can see that in Christ, there is no distinction between people based on their race, gender, or social status. This includes people with disabilities, who are equal members of the body of Christ. God values each person equally and desires for us to love and accept one another just as Christ has loved and accepted us (John 13:34-35).
5. God has given your child a unique gift or talent to share with the world
"Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God's grace in its various forms." - 1 Peter 4:10 (NIV)
This verse reminds us that every person, including those with special needs, has unique gifts and talents that can be used to make a positive impact on the world. By valuing and nurturing these gifts, we can help our children to realize their full potential and make a positive difference in the world around them.
This Easter season, as we celebrate the death and resurrection of our savior, I want to encourage you that not only does our heavenly father know and love you. In the same way, He fully loves your son or daughter. He does not view them as a burden or less than.
He tends his flock like a shepherd:
He gathers the lambs in his arms
and carries them close to his heart;
he gently leads those that have young.~ Isaiah 40:11 (NIV)
Written by Jonathan McGuire
Jonathan McGuire is the dad of two boys and co-founder of Hope Anew, a nonprofit that guides the beat up, battered, and worn out parents of children impacted by disabilities and special needs through the spiritual and emotional challenges they face to Christ-centered hope and healing.
When Your Bible Time Goes Stale
In the past, when my son was so sick and required 24/7 care, there were months I didn’t have the time or energy to even open my Bible to read one verse. Written by Sarah McGuire
I pulled out my Bible to complete my Bible reading. I finished Revelation 22. The last book and chapter of the Bible. It was December 31 and I had done it again. I’d read the Bible through in a year.
In the past, when my son was so sick and required 24/7 care, there were months I didn’t have the time or energy to even open my Bible to read one verse. This was before smart phones, YouVersion audio Bibles, and Audible. So, if I was holding my screaming son who was in pain, I couldn’t be holding my Bible.
For several years now, I’ve had the privilege of being able to read the Bible through in one year. (I really like the chronological format.) Yet, as I closed my Bible this December, I knew I needed a different focus for the coming year. I could feel how it had become more of a task to complete, a goal to achieve, rather than time spent with my Father.
With the new year, I like to take time to set some goals for the coming year. I evaluate where our family has been, strengths, weaknesses, needs, vision for life, work, family members, self. I think about what has been working and what has not been working. I think about what or how I dream of being and of what and who I dream of my kids becoming and set some intentional steps to move us in that direction.
If you’ve spent any time goal setting, you’ve probably heard of SMART goals. Goals that are Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-based. Reading the Bible through in one year fits that metric perfectly. Yet, I knew that repeating that goal again this year would not get me where I wanted to go. It wouldn’t help me with who I want to be and to become.
My real goal is to know God more; to love God fully; to be loving, joyful, peaceful, patient, kind, good, gentle, and self-disciplined; and to abide and rest in Him because all those things I just listed are a result of Him in me. Those goals are a little harder to define as a SMART goal and for me to make them into SMART goals would defeat the purpose.
Next week I’ll share with you my solution and what I’ve chosen to do this year as well as some suggestions for how to get some Bible or God time in when caring for a child that takes your everything and your every moment. In the meantime, comment and share with me what types of Bible or God-time goals you have used and enjoyed.
