A group of 5-8 men and women, different cultures, different lifestyles, different educational background, but we all have one big thing in common: children with disabilities. Some of our children have disabilities related to medical needs exclusively but have typical development otherwise; some of our children have disabilities related to their cognitive functioning but are otherwise "healthy." We have met twice and I have been searching for the word to describe what we all feel through this group...honestly I think the best word is "support." During both meetings everyone has been open to sharing some things that are going well at the moment and we have also shared prayer requests. It has been a venue for everything from trading tips such as how to navigate the public school system to providing encouragement in the midst of struggles.
In between our two meetings I met a father at the beach. I don't remember how we began the topic but he had no idea about Anellah's medical needs and began to share about his daughter being in the hospital for months as an infant. He said, "it's one thing to be a patient in the hospital yourself, I know because I've been there, but it is completely different when it is your child...you just can't imagine." Indeed, my friend, I can imagine. I was able to share a little bit about Anellah and asked if his daughter continued to have any medical needs but due to a surgery she is not expected to have any more significant medical issues. I didn't invite him to the group because the needs were no longer present but it really felt like encouragement that this will be a wonderful way to minister to others BOTH within and outside of our church.
