Back in 1995, God gave Dianne and me a boy who is different than any other boy I’ve ever heard of. I mean that literally; he has an unusual mix of disabilities. God has used that boy to reveal more of his grace and power and mercy than I ever could have imagined.
And he has made the Bible more precious than I could have thought possible.
Today marks the 500th post on The Works of God since we started in September 2009. Given what we imagined as a blog on disability ministry back in 2008 (on an entirely different blog platform), I find that amazing. And there are still books to be read, journals critiqued, ministries encouraged, and scriptures explored.
If you are new to this blog, this is the boy who God uses to keep me dependent on him. Paul sang this song following the Easter service in April 2010. He is 14 years old in this video:
Over the past several months, he has been plagued by mysterious, seizure-like episodes that have discouraged these spontaneous expressions of praise. God has helped us through these hard months, and we continue to pray for answers.
But Saturday we were given a little gift of the old singing:
Paul is a gift. So are all the other children and adults with disabilities God has given to his church. The world needs to know that.
We’ll keep telling that story until we run out of things to say. It might be a while.
To God be the glory. Great things he has done!
Praise God! These posts have become a part of my morning routine. Such encouragement your family is to mine. Looking forward to the next 500!
[…] This post was mentioned on Twitter by John Knight, greg lucas. greg lucas said: RT @johnpknight: 500 Posts and Counting http://wp.me/pvF8a-Mg […]
Thanks for allowing us to walk alongside your family in this journey and for sharing a glimpse of Paul with us through your posts. I started writing after reading your blog..thanks for inspiring me to tell our story as well.
God story of faithfulness has no end…keep telling it! I look forward to reading each morning!
Praise the Lord! This Paul is always so blessed by your Paul!
Thanks for posting the videos, John.
Congrats on 500 posts! I am so glad I found this site a couple of months ago. It has truly been a blessing. Thank you.
Wow. God is good. All the time. Almost brought tears to my eyes. Wow.
I have a 3 year old autistic son. He is beautiful and special. I know there’s a reason God chose me to be his mommy. Its hard. Very hard but God is still my hope.
Nothing “almost” about the tears in my eyes…
Beautiful clear voice and the purest praise.
What a blessing!
Thanks for your post and ministry. As someone who grew up with and still has Tourette Syndrome, ADD, and dyslexia, I can appreciate first hand the value of your ministry and God blessing your lives.
Keep the faith. Persevere. All things are possible. Be encouraged.
Hal
Praise God also that He gave Paul parents like you! Thank you for loving him and letting him feel the love of Jesus.
I got to spend time with Paul when I worked in nursery. He truly is one of a kind. You are blessed.
what a cool talented young man Paul is- i am truly inspired… i had a sister who passed away at 11 days- if she were to have lived- she would have had down syndrome- i have always had a heart for such special kids- whatever their uniqueness… thank you for reminding me of my call to love on those God created so special….
There are children that are amazing and if they get healed wont have the special amazing gifts. You are talking about all these strange things that are happening. Septo Optic Hypoplasia. It has all these and other signs. Good luck and we will be praying for you..
What an absolutely perfect way to celebrate 500 posts. When there are hardly words to express such a wide range of emotions, let us simply praise Him! Thank you, John and Diane, for taking us to Jesus through your story and these posts which are part of my daily routine. Thank you, Paul, for leading us in worship. Thank You, Lord, for never letting us get too comfortable.
[…] John Knight: Back in 1995, God gave Dianne and me a boy who is different than any other boy I’ve ever heard of. I mean that literally; he has an unusual mix of disabilities. God has used that boy to reveal more of his grace and power and mercy than I ever could have imagined. […]
Praise the Lord of wonders! I help lead worship and never have I heard more beautiful worship than your son Paul singing that song, never a more beautiful song have I heard. I will be praying for your ministry and for your son, and I hope and pray that God will continue to prove His faithfulness to you through your son. Blessings.
I wish there could be studies on kids with disabilities that were raised in families that loved Jesus as compared with kids with disabilities that were not raised in families that loved Jesus. I imagine there would be quite a difference. Thank you for posting those precious videos. I am definitely going to be sharing this post with friends whose kids have disabilities.
Also, have you heard of Sho Baraka? He’s a reformed hip hop artist. Well, his son has autism and I thought you & your blog followers might be interested in what he has to say about parenting him. here’s the vimeo link: http://www.vimeo.com/17899392
Thanks for the gift of your friendship and encouragement. I am so thankful that I know Paul and his great family! You help keep my focus on Christ.
Thanks for your blogs. I enjoy reading them and pray for you and Paul. I am glad we have gotten to know you too.
thanks for your writing. As a mom with a child with multiple disabilities I appreciate your ability to put your heart on paper. I was excited to check your link on disability ministry b/c we want that, but don’t know what it should look like. Most people w/ children w/ disabilities don’t do to church b/c it’s one more place to battle a whole new group of people. I want to help change that, but haven’t seen it done. Your link was empty like ours. I’d like to hear about anything you do at such a large church since your last event was dated in 2009. thanks for the videos:)
His songs are beautiful, John. Thank you for sharing with us.
[…] 500-posts-and-counting Uncategorized ← Sad story LikeBe the first to like this post. […]
Wow! Thank you for being so faithful to start this blog. I am always blessed and encouraged for my walk with my daughter, but not just our new world of disability, but also the walk of faith. Your blog drives me to believe the goodness of our great God. And somehow he will be our strength and carry us through. Thank you for your faithfulness. By the way I think I love both those versions of those songs more than any version I have heard.
So very thankful for you and Pauly.
[…] 500 Posts and Counting Back in 1995, God gave Dianne and me a boy who is different than any other boy I’ve ever heard of. I mean that […] […]
Just discovered your site from a tweet from John Piper. Paul’s lovely singing reminds me of my own son’s spontaneous singing. He is 9 and autistic. He is highly functioning, but language came slow. When he was about 6 he wanted some ketchup for something he was eating and made up a song while I was getting it for him. It went:
Let’s “ketchup” this world
Let’s “ketchup” this world
Let’s get into heaven and everything will be fine
Let’s get into heaven
Let’s get into heaven
I have no doubt he may have literally meant to get everyone some ketchup, but I loved how ketchup can be interpreted “catch up.” Priceless!
Thanks for the 500 ways you have loved and encouraged our family.
What a beautiful voice. What a blessing his singing is!
Heartwarming!
I am so very blessed to have found your blog via John Piper’s tweet. I will be praying and checking back often as I have been greatly encouraged by your posts and by Paul’s sweet praises to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. May He continue to use Paul and you for His glory and to bring many to the throneroom of grace.
What a blessing! Thank you for sharing your son’s gift of praise with all of us!
10,000 blessings to you.
[…] also marks the 1,000th post at The Works of God. Ironically, 500 Posts and Counting is still the most-viewed post in our 3+ year […]