WHY THIS MINISTRY?

Why take on the challenge of starting a ministry to families with children with significant emotional and behavioral disorders, as well as families of children with developmental disorders?

The bottom line is responding to the most vital needs of children and families. Since 1991, I’ve practiced in a variety of private and community based settings as a Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist. During that time, I’ve been blessed to be on the faculty of a great medical school with a growing child psychiatry presence, involved with clinical research that afforded me the opportunity to travel the country and teach on an ongoing basis, and placed in a group practice with truly talented and gifted people who are great at serving distressed families. I’ve seen how the development of evidence-based treatment approaches have literally become a godsend to families with children diagnosed with biologically based disorders such as ADHD, Bipolar Disorder, Schizophrenia, anxiety disorders and autistic spectrum disorders.

I’ve also seen at the same time (often accompanied by loving Christian foster parents and adoptive parents) the devastating effects of trauma, abuse and neglect in kids passing through my clinics and my practice. At those times, I wished more congregations were able to offer the support of a loving church family to parents seeking to fulfill their call to model the love of Christ to children who may have been exposed to multigenerational cycles of abuse and neglect.

I know that the Lord has used my education and experience in responding to the prayers of parents and grandparents of children with hidden disabilities. I also recognize that my talents are limited and that many days I sense that I’m treating symptoms as opposed to the real needs of the children and families. I want to be able to share something with my patients and their families of truly lasting significance.

As a physician (and aspiring researcher) this is what I know to be true: There is nothing more important in this life than for every individual to accept and acknowledge Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, and to establish and maintain a personal relationship with Him.

If I were fortunate enough to discover a cure for autism, or depression, or schizophrenia, I certainly wouldn’t keep that knowledge to myself. But when it comes down to talking about life’s most important problems, and in particular, the cure for the most serious of all conditions, sin, we’re like those that Jesus described in the Sermon on the Mount who would hide our light under a bushel basket.

Families of children with hidden disabilities face many unique obstacles when it comes to learning about God’s love for them through His Son, Jesus Christ. Estimates suggest that most families with a child experiencing a hidden disability don’t regularly attend worship. Parents may fear criticism or shame from church members who lack understanding of the nature of the child’s problem. Couples may not be able to worship together after being told that their child is no longer welcome in Sunday school.  As many as 80% of marriages where a special needs child is involved end in divorce because of the emotional and financial strains associated with caring for such children. Many families avoid church because of erroneous and false teaching that their child’s problems are a punishment from God, or that God does not fully love them because of their circumstances.

We at Key Ministry Foundation have been called to minister to churches who seek to respond to the needs of children with hidden disabilities and their families.  We seek to work through churches because Jesus Christ established the church as a primary means of evangelism, discipleship and nurturing in the world. God has already gifted the church with many talented people and we believe He will make use of these gifts in ministering to families of children with hidden disabilities. We need to remove the barriers that deter such families from attending church, so that parents and siblings of children with special needs, along with the affected children themselves:

1.      Accept Jesus Christ into their heart as Lord and Savior, and develop a personal relationship with Him.

2.      Hear Christ’s Gospel taught on an ongoing basis.

3.      Receive God’s love and support through a nurturing church family.

Again, I hope the resources we are able to share are helpful. Keep in mind that we are hardly experts when it comes to this ministry, and we clearly seek to learn from others called to this work. We desire relationships with others who have been called to serve children with hidden disabilities so that we can continually improve the quality of what we can offer to children and families.

I trust that you are not encountering our ministry by accident. I wish that you will spend at least a few moments in prayer, inquiring as to whether God, in a small, quiet voice, may be calling you where you live to this noble work!

Blessings,

Stephen Grcevich, MD

President, Board of Directors

Key Ministry Foundation