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“I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass; I have purposed, and I will do it.” God

October 21, 2012 by John Knight

“Woe to him who strives with him who formed him, a pot among earthen pots!

Does the clay say to him who forms it, ‘What are you making?’ or ‘Your work has no handles’? Woe to him who says to a father, ‘What are you begetting?’ or to a woman, ‘With what are you in labor?’”

Thus says the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, and the one who formed him:

“Ask me of things to come; will you command me concerning my children and the work of my hands?

I made the earth and created man on it; it was my hands that stretched out the heavens, and I commanded all their host.

I have stirred him up in righteousness, and I will make all his ways level; he shall build my city and set my exiles free, not for price or reward,” says the LORD of hosts.  (Isaiah 45:9-13 ESV)

“Listen to me, O house of Jacob, all the remnant of the house of Israel, who have been borne by me from before your birth, carried from the womb; even to your old age I am he, and to gray hairs I will carry you.

I have made, and I will bear; I will carry and will save.” (Isaiah 46:3-4 ESV)

“Remember this and stand firm, recall it to mind, you transgressors, remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,’ calling a bird of prey from the east, the man of my counsel from a far country.

I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass; I have purposed, and I will do it. (Isaiah 46:8-11 ESV)

Posted in Scripture | 7 Comments »

Repost: Treat All My Kids the Same Differently

October 20, 2012 by John Knight

I spent a great couple of days with my middle son, Daniel, last weekend.  From the outside, he’s a typically-developing young man intellectually and physically.  But since he’s MY young man, I think he’s pretty special.  I enjoyed my time with him a great deal. 
 
And it reminded me of how important and helpful it is that other people recognize that I have several children, not just my oldest with disabilities.  Since I’ve gone over that before, and I’m on the road for a few days, I thought I’d repost something from 2009. A few things have changed since then – like the number of grandchildren and great-grandchildren!

For those of us who have been given the gift of more than one child, and one of those children has a disability, we know it is hard for friends and family to know how to talk to us about our children.

After all, we’re a moving target: are we having a season of good, stable days with our kids?  Are we in the midst of some difficult situation?  Are we consumed with the issues surrounding the child with the disability?  Are our non-disabled children doing something significant and interesting?  Is that all happening at the same time?

Most families are moving targets, of course.  But having a disabled family member seems to ramp up the complications, and those complications are often unusual.  So it makes it a little, or a lot, more difficult to know how to talk with us about our children.

Which leads to two common mistakes people make:

  1. Not talking to us at all, or avoiding any talk about any of our children.
  2. Concentrating all talk to either the child with the disability, or the children without disabilities.

My parents, as we celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary this weekend, reminded me of their remarkable ability to treat all their grandchildren and great-children uniquely with the same affections.

These 13 (16 if you count spouses, and my parents love their three granddaughters-in-law as well) individuals are so very different, from age (29 years to 3 weeks), education (pursuing a Ph.D. to not-yet-kindergarten), physical abilities (quite fit police officer to completely helpless babies), or even musical abilities (composer to no musical abilities at all).

But they most certainly talk about and with all those children!

My parents love them all in ways that show they know them as individuals, appreciate their particular giftings, delight in their accomplishments, are confident they can get through hard times, and never, in any circumstance, stop loving them.  They are wonderful examples.

Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing. 1 Thessalonians 5:11

Now, certainly, grandparents have a particular interest in knowing and encouraging their legacy.  And we have also been blessed by people who take a particular interest in a child of mine; I’ll post about that later.

But it is a good lesson for anyone who wants to be helpful: demonstrate an interest in all my children.

Posted in commentary, Helpful things | Leave a Comment »

There’s still time to submit questions

October 19, 2012 by John Knight

I’m very grateful for everyone who responded to my request from Sunday for potential questions during the panel discussion at The Works of God: God’s Good Design in Disability.

Questions have ranged across a variety of subjects:

  • adoption
  • salvation for those with cognitive disabilities
  • how does finding our identity in Christ shape how we think about disability
  • handling anger against strangers and their questions/behaviour
  • coping with grief while recognizing the value of children with disabilities
  • hidden disabilities and the church
  • how to guide a church/friends towards more appropriate language about disability (i.e., not using the word retarded thoughtlessly)

And others!

If the above sparks some thoughts for you, please consider sharing them in the form below.  While our time for questions is limited that day, this blog will, Lord willing, continue and might be a forum for addressing some of those questions in the future.

And please remember to hit the ‘submit’ button at the bottom of the form.  Thank you!

Posted in Special Events | 1 Comment »

Three weeks from today – please pray!

October 18, 2012 by John Knight

I appeal to you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God on my behalf . . . (Romans 15:30 ESV)

In three weeks we will gather to celebrate God’s Good Design in Disability at Bethlehem’s North Campus.  It is a weighty and ultimately beautiful subject. But it requires us to constantly fight against the tide of culture and, I must admit, my own sinful desires for an easy life.

I’m praying that God will change peoples’ lives through this conference – that their heart eyes (Ephesians 1:18) will be opened, maybe for the first time, to who Jesus is.  And for those who already know God this way, to be encouraged and emboldened in their faith.  Would you pray with me about that?

Would you also pray for our speakers?  They carry a joyous and heavy responsibility to help us see God and his word more clearly on this subject of disability and suffering.

  • John Piper
  • Nancy Guthrie
  • Mark Talbot
  • Greg Lucas
  • And special guests: Krista Horning and Pastor Kempton Turner

Please also pray for our events staff and volunteers.  I am so encouraged by their faithfulness in attending to details for our sake, and there are hundreds of details they are attending to these days!

Please pray, and then let us see what God might be pleased to do!

Posted in commentary, Prayer Requests, Special Events | 2 Comments »

Let us never have God say of us, “you turn things upside down!” Our future joy is at stake.

October 17, 2012 by John Knight

Ah, you who hide deep from the LORD your counsel, whose deeds are in the dark, and who say, “Who sees us? Who knows us?”  You turn things upside down!

Shall the potter be regarded as the clay, that the thing made should say of its maker, “He did not make me”; or the thing formed say of him who formed it, “He has no understanding”?

Is it not yet a very little while until Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field, and the fruitful field shall be regarded as a forest?

In that day the deaf shall hear the words of a book, and out of their gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind shall see.

The meek shall obtain fresh joy in the LORD, and the poor among mankind shall exult in the Holy One of Israel.

(Isaiah 29:15-19 ESV)

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“This is not a plaything for me. We’re talking about death!” John Piper

October 16, 2012 by John Knight

Pastor John laid out why God is the center of our joy so clearly – including for those experiencing intense suffering – that I hope you will watch or listen to the entire sermon.

If you can’t watch it all, watch about 90 seconds from 3:05 to 4:35 to hear Pastor John talk about death and Christian hedonism. Yes, being satisfied in Christ is important at the moments of greatest pain.

And if you have only 2 and 1/2 more minutes, go to 43:20 of the sermon where he looks specifically at disability and weakness.

Posted in Sermons | 1 Comment »

“If I can keep one family, one person, from having to live with the guilt and almost making the mistake I almost made. . .”

October 15, 2012 by John Knight

ESPN has created a series of videos called E:60 – The Best Stories in Sports.  I think ESPN’s creating this story makes it even more amazing!

This is an incredible testimony from a man who admits he wanted his wife to abort their daughter with Down syndrome.  He was afraid it would reflect on him and interfere with his perfect life.

His wife wouldn’t abort. That same man would then say of his daughter, “I realized she’s like every other kid – she’s my kid.”

This is worth the 14 minutes:

Please, get this in front of men.

Posted in commentary | 3 Comments »

We’d like your input about the Questions and Answer Panel Discussion at the Disability Conference

October 14, 2012 by John Knight

At 10:15 a.m. (Central) on Thursday, November 8, John Piper, Nancy Guthrie, Mark Talbot and Greg Lucas will be part of a panel discussion facilitated by Pastor Kempton Turner (you might recognize him as the father on the cover of Just the Way I Am).

All of the registered conference participants will be getting an email from Desiring God in a few days asking if they have specific questions they would like to see asked of the panel.  I thought I would open it up to our community to see if there are questions you have.

The usual caveats apply – we have limited time so not every question can be asked.  But maybe your question will be!

Please note, you must hit the ‘submit’ button below or your response will not be recorded.  Please also use this form instead of using the comments section below:

The question and answer time will be live-streamed, along with the rest of the conference messages.

Posted in Special Events | 1 Comment »

Are you a pastor AND a father of a child with a disability? Do you know one?

October 13, 2012 by John Knight

If you are leading a church and leading a family that includes a child with a disability, I especially hope you will attend our conference, The Works of God: God’s Good Design in Disability.  If you know of such men, please let them know about this conference.

More than a year ago I was having lunch with a Pastor-dad, and he remarked that he had never met another pastor who also has a child with a disability.  I thought then, that shouldn’t be!  These men are not alone – others are and have walked this same path and tasted deeply of the grace of God as they lead churches and families.

I’ve had the chance to meet or correspond with several pastors who also parent a child with moderate to very severe disabilities; not one of them treats life as easy and breezy, and they are unusually prepared to lead their people through what God has to say about suffering and his sovereignty.

And I know of several such men who are coming to the conference!

If you are a leader of a church or a church ministry, I particularly hope you will consider attending so that you can meet each other, encourage each other, and enjoy the camaraderie that comes with sharing similarities in the life and family God has given you.

If you know of such men, would you encourage them to come (with their wives), maybe even helping them with registration, child care and travel expenses?

Posted in Special Events | 2 Comments »

This made me smile

October 12, 2012 by John Knight

I was walking with my daughter to the youth room at church and almost ran into this:20121010-185842.jpg

I don’t believe a pamphlet can change a person’s attitude about disability. That requires some serious heart work.

But the presence of those pamphlets said something to me, and hopefully others experiencing disability:

You are welcome here. Please, come on in and join us.

Posted in commentary | Leave a Comment »

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