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Archive for the ‘Special Events’ Category

Free Twin Cities Event: Imagining Personhood in Light of Limitations, Disability, and Suffering

Posted in Special Events on July 22, 2011| 1 Comment »

Eugenics didn’t begin with Hitler or government agencies or Margaret Sanger and Planned Parenthood.

It began in the universities of Britain, Germany and the United States.

Long before infanticide of babies with disabilities became a government-sanctioned reality in the Netherlands, faculty at prestigious universities in the United States and Europe were arguing for it.

So I’m grateful when organizations invite discussion around important issues, bringing such issues into the light of day rather than letting discussions that could shape future public policy and culture hide behind the doors of the academy or through inaccessible academic journals.

And one of the important issues of our day that impacts all people, but probably most directly people living with cognitive disabilities of all kinds, is the definition of a person.

On August 2 from 7:00 a.m. to noon, The MaLaurin Institute is hosting a free event for pastors, lay church leaders and university faculty:

The Problem of the Modern Self: Imagining Personhood in Light of Limitations, Disability, and Suffering

RSVP Required | Breakfast Provided

Contact : 612-378-1935 or maclaurin@maclaurin.org

Location: The Campus Club, Coffman Memorial Union

The main speakers are Dr. Joseph Davis of the Institute for Advanced Studies in Culture at the University of Virginia and Dr. Elizabeth Schiltz (who happens to be the mother of a child with disabilities) of the Terrence J. Murphy Institute for Catholic Thought, Law and Public Policy.

I’m trying to arrange my schedule to attend, and I expect it will be a very challenging, sobering morning.  But I also expect that God will use discussions like this to prepare us to defend and promote those who cannot speak for themselves, and to bring greater glory to his name!

You can read the flyer for the event here.

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Sweet fellowship together

Posted in Special Events on July 20, 2011| 2 Comments »

We returned from our vacation just in time to spend Saturday afternoon with some of our favorite people in the entire world: Bethlehem families experiencing disability.

It was hot, very humid, and wonderful.

Pastor Kempton lead a short devotion and prayer, which I foolishly did not video.  How this man loves to open the Word of God and encourages us to the same affections!

That’s him in the center:

His bride, Caryn, leads Bethlehem’s Hope Keeper’s Ministry which organized this gathering.

Thankfully, even in all the heat and conversation, she graciously answered my question: what is Hope Keepers?

Thank you, Kempton and Caryn, for pouring your lives into our lives.  You make God look glorious!

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Three interviews now posted

Posted in News, Special Events on June 11, 2011| 4 Comments »

Pastor John and I had the chance to sit down over three weeks to talk about disability, the Bible, the church and the glory of God.

Please pray that God would use it to encourage struggling parents and embolden churches.

Interview one

Interview two

Interview three

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Children Desiring God Conference Seminar Audio Now Available

Posted in Special Events on May 14, 2011| Leave a Comment »

Audio for all the seminars at the Children Desiring God 2011 National Conference is now available.  Video is available for the plenary sessions, including the one delivered by our own Kempton Turner.

Many of you prayed for Brenda Fischer and for me as we prepared for our sessions that more specifically dealt with disability or suffering.  Thank you for doing so!  We both felt helped.

Here are links to our sessions and handouts:

Brenda Fischer:

Disability, Autism and the Tender Mercy of God – Brenda Fischer at the 2011 CDG National Conference

Disability, Autism and the Tender Mercy of God – CDG conference 2011 Fischer handout

John Knight:

Helping Families Deal with the Unexpected – John Knight at the 2011 CDG National Conference

CDG conference 2011 Knight handout

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“They are gifts no matter how or when they come.”

Posted in Quotes, Special Events on May 9, 2011| 1 Comment »

Pastor Kenny Stokes – again! – recognized the God-granted value of children with disabilities during the dedication of children on Saturday evening.  This section of his remarks is about a minute long.

Pastor Kenny – ‘they are gifts!’

I am deeply grateful for pastors who intentionally and carefully recognize that not all children will be the same, nor will the paths of parenting be the same.

Pastor Bud Burk closed the dedication with a wonderful, encouraging prayer.  I’m glad we caught that as well.

Pastor Bud praying May 2011

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National Day of Prayer 2011 – Suggestions from Joni

Posted in Quotes, Special Events on May 5, 2011| Leave a Comment »

Joni Eareckson Tada is the Honorary Chairperson for today’s National Day of Prayer.  Joni offered several specific things we can pray about today (and every other day, too!).

For the National Day of Prayer, remember to intercede for all members of society, including the elderly, children and adults with disabilities.

  • Let’s make the Gospel accessible to all — pray for churches to not only welcome, but learn to embrace people with disabilities.
  • Caregivers need a break — pray for parents and spouses needing respite as they give full-time care to their loved ones with special needs.
  • A disability can be lonely — ask God to draw people who feel isolated into an abundant life with Him.
  • Siblings have feelings, too! Pray for children who sometimes feel neglected because of the attention demanded by the medical needs of their sibling.
  • Marriages with a disability are under stress – pray that marriages will be strengthened, not weakened, by a disability.
  • Remember to pray for America’s brave warriors who have returned home from Iraq or Afghanistan bearing wounds of conflict.
  • The abortion rate of unborn children with disabilities has escalated in the last 3 years – pray with a pro-life perspective.
  • It’s time to make Luke 14 a reality – ask God to empower churches for active, effective outreach to people affected by disability.

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Born again to a living hope!

Posted in Scripture, Special Events on April 26, 2011| 1 Comment »

This Easter was one of contrasts with previous years.

We attended the Sunday evening service for the first time.  We experienced a wonderful worship team rather than the wonderful orchestra.  The normal excitement and energy of a packed room was replaced with a more peaceful, less crowded time of worship.  And no trouble parking!

Last year, Paul was awake and active and blessed many by singing the Resurrection Chant.

This year, he was mostly lethargic and slept through the service, an impact of both the new medicines he is taking and the spells he continues to have.

One thing remains the same: hope in Jesus Christ!

I soaked in one of the readings from Sunday, and invite you to do the same, from 1 Peter 1:3-7:

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

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Read this book and participate in ‘table talks’ with Pastor John

Posted in Book Commentary, Special Events on March 26, 2011| Leave a Comment »

After more than 26 years of being associated with Bethlehem, I can say that Pastor John’s preaching has been his primary influence on me.  But a close second are his books.  And of his books, Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist lays the foundation for all the rest that are to come.

Through April 7, you can buy a copy of the newest edition of Desiring God for only $5.

A live-streamed web broadcast will take place every Thursday in April at noon (live Eastern Standard Time, rebroadcast at noon during Central, Mountain and Pacific Times), where Pastor John will take questions on two chapters of Desiring God.

Reading the Bible and seeing God as sovereign and good has been massively important in my life in how I understand and respond to disability and disease.  And God has also used Pastor John to help me when he speaks or writes specifically on the issue of suffering:

For (the Apostle Paul) any suffering that befell him while serving Christ was part of the “cost” of discipleship.  When a missionary’s child gets diarrhea, we think of this as part of the price of faithfulness.  But if any parent is walking in the path of obedience to God’s calling, it is the same price.  What turns sufferings into sufferings “with” and “for” Christ is not how intentional our enemies are, but how faithful we are.  If we are Christ’s, then what befalls us is for his glory and for our good whether it is caused by enzymes or by enemies (emphasis mine). John Piper, Desiring God, p. 260.

If the notion of Christian hedonism just seems strange (or even blasphemous) to you, buy the book, read the first two chapters of Desiring God and join in the live-streamed discussion on April 7.  You might think about God’s interest in your happiness in an entirely new way.

You can also read an earlier edition of Desiring God online for free.

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Please pray for our churches and their leadership

Posted in Special Events on March 13, 2011| Leave a Comment »

The Children Desiring God Conference was a wonderful experience, and I look forward to posting links to several sessions when they are available.  David Michel ended the final session by reciting Ephesians from memory.  What an encouragement to hear all of Paul’s letter to the Ephesians at once!

I also had the opportunity to meet many brothers and sisters from around the world who are dealing with disability in their families or in their churches.  I was reminded, frequently, of how good God has been to us at Bethlehem.

Would you pray for our churches and leadership around the world?

  • Some churches have great, supportive leadership for disability ministry, like we have experienced at Bethlehem.  Praise God for such encouraging examples!
  • Some churches have leadership who don’t really understand why this is important.  Please pray for them that God would open eyes, and that God would also help the families experiencing disability be patient toward and respectful of the leaders God has appointed.
  • Everyone feels inadequate.  That’s not a bad thing – it increases our dependency on him as we ask for his help (Philippians 4:5-7).
  • Nobody has enough volunteers. Pray for more people to join us, and experience joy with us!

 

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“When the Lord utters a promise, He never runs back from it” – Spurgeon

Posted in Sermons, Special Events on March 10, 2011| Leave a Comment »

I was reading through Spurgeon’s sermon, ‘The Anchor‘ that he delivered in 1876 and thought of the theme for the Children Desiring God conference: Holding Fast to the Word of Truth:

What is our anchor? It has two great blades or flukes to it, each of which acts as a holdfast. It is made of two Divine things. The one is God’s promise, a sure and stable thing, indeed! We are very ready to take a good man’s promise, but perhaps the good man may forget to fulfill it, or be unable to do so—neither of these things can occur with the Lord—He cannot forget and He cannot fail to do as He has said! Jehovah’s promise, what a certain thing it must be! If you had nothing but the Lord’s bare Word to trust to, surely your faith should never stagger. To this sure word is added another Divine thing, namely, God’s oath.

Beloved, I scarcely dare speak upon this sacred topic! God’s oath, His solemn assertion, His swearing by Himself! Conceive the majesty, the awe, the certainty of this! Here, then, are two Divine assurances, which, like the flukes of the anchor, hold us fast. Who dares doubt the promise of God? Who can have the audacity to distrust His oath? We have for our anchor two things, which, in addition to their being Divine, are expressly said to be Immutable—that is, two things which cannot change! When the Lord utters a promise, He never runs back from it—“the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.” Has He said and shall He not do it? Has He promised and shall it not stand fast? He never changes and His promise abides from generation to generation!

Good men DO forget their promises, or find they cannot fulfill those promises.  But God ALWAYS fulfills his promises. What a great truth to teach to the next generation!  And what a great comfort for us living in the uncertainty of disability, disease, and suffering.

Personal note: I have a Kindle and access to the internet about anywhere I go.  But I discovered a small collection of Spurgeon’s sermons in the church library one Sunday between services. What a find! There is definitely still a place for church libraries.

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