5 things small churches can uniquely offer … right now by ben Gosden
Published January 29, 2015 on the Ministry Matters website For the next few weeks I will be sharing one on Gosden’s five things in our bulletin to give us a start on discussing ideas for applying them at Tyner UMC. My hope is that all people in our congregation will prayerfully reflect on how we might “play to our strengths” as we rethink church and cast a new vision for Tyner UMC in 2021 and beyond. The second asks us to think about a population that we might be uniquely suited to serve—one that often gets overlooked. 2. Welcome special needs persons and families with special needs children. One of the quiet struggles churches often don’t recognize is how to incorporate persons with special needs into the life of the church. Small churches offer a unique opportunity to meet this need because they are small enough to warmly welcome and offer the individual attention a family who has a special needs child might need. It’s a daunting thing to take a child with special needs to church for fear of them standing out or somehow disturbing the flow of worship. It’s also very lonely for that child to get lost in the mix of a large, overwhelming children’s program. Small churches can offer love, hospitality and attention to make a family feel welcome. I’m not sure how to reach out to this type of population. Since we’re focused on evangelism this week in the message maybe it’s best done “one by one.” Is there a family you know or perhaps an adult with special needs that could use a church family? If they aren’t able to come to church, are there other ways our congregation might support and encourage them?
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Pastor CathyPastor Cathy has been appointed to Tyner UMC since July 2019; she also is a part-time writing instructor at Bethel University in Mishawaka. Archives
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