Have you ever met a person you couldn’t understand?
Hi, I’m Joni Eareckson Tada and welcome not only to Joni and Friends, but welcome to the world of Luke 14. That’s the Scripture where Jesus tells us to reach out to disabled people?! Well, what if you can’t understand the speech of that person with a disability? Maybe he’s had a stroke or he has cerebral palsy or some other condition that makes it difficult to understand his speech.
It happened to a pastor-friend of mine. After Sunday services, Pastor Don was greeting his parishioners as they filed past him at the church door and he noticed two visitors in line – it was a woman who was pushing a man with cerebral palsy in a wheelchair. Now Pastor Don really wanted to make them feel welcomed, but when he heard the man’s garbled speech back in line, he kinda froze. Pastor Don knew he’d never be able to understand the guy! So what should he do?!
Well, Jesus foresaw such a scenario, so He gives Pastor Don, and you -- and anyone else who might feel uneasy -- the incentive of a blessing when you forge ahead and overcome your fears. For our Savior said, in Luke chapter 14, "When you give the banquet, don't invite your friends, and your relatives, or rich neighbors [that is people with whom you are comfortable]... no, invite the disabled, and the lame, and the blind... do this and you will be blessed". Friend, when you reach out to people with disabilities to share the love of God, you will have the commendation, the favor, and approval of your Savior. Nowhere else in the gospels does Jesus get specific about who He wants invited into His kingdom; nowhere else does He attach such a blessing when we do so. God wants to bless you through the person with a disability who wheels into your church building.
So let’s go back to that wheelchair-user, the guy with CP sitting in line waiting to talk to Pastor Don. Well, do you know what Pastor Don ended up doing? When the guy with cerebral palsy reached him, Don leaned forward, gave him his smile, looked him in the eyes, and placed his hand firmly on the man’s shoulder. And he welcomed him warmly and then asked if he enjoyed the Sunday service (boy, Don was really opening himself up there because he knew he’d probably wouldn’t understand the answer)!
And that’s exactly what happened… he did not understand. The man with cerebral palsy replied, but Don just couldn’t get the gist of what he was saying. He decided it was best not to pretend that he understood the labored speech. And so this is what Pastor Don did. He smiled and said to the man in the wheelchair, "Friend, you know I want to definitely hear what you have to say...so, may I ask your assistant here who is pushing you to help me better understand?" Voilà. Help was as close as the woman right behind the wheelchair. Best of all, Pastor Don was able to make this young man and his friend feel welcomed to his church -- that's something millions of disabled people across the globe simply don't experience in their communities.
So, let me ask you (especially if you’re a pastor), would you like some helpful hints to put you at ease about relating to people with disabilities? Especially disabling conditions you don’t understand or have difficulty relating to? Well, I’d like to give you my “Disability Tips for Pastors” – it’s a nifty little booklet you can hand your own pastor or give to a Sunday school teacher. All you have to do to get yours is click on joniandfriendsradio.org and ask for your free copy of “Disability Tips for Pastors.” It’s chocked full of helpful, easy advice that will enable you to reflect the true spirit of Luke chapter 14! Don’t forget, visit me today at joniandfriendsradio.org. Until next time, this is Joni Eareckson Tada for Joni and Friends. See what we’ve got going on today at joniandfriendsradio.org, and share a few comments with me when you’re there.
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