Dr. Steve Grcevich sits down and interviews Dr. Lamar Hardwick on his new book How Ableism Fuels Racism. This is Part 1 of a 3-part series! Dr. Lamar Hardwick will be speaking at Disability & the Church 2024 Conference in Orlando, FL May 1-3. Go to www.keyministry.org/datc2024 to register now!
Recently, Catherine had a conversation with Dr. Jim and Heather Sells, authors of the new book “Beyond the Clinical Hour: How Counselors Can Partner with the Church to Address the Mental Health Crisis.” Jim, Heather and their co-author Dr. Amy Trout offer a valuable resource to both mental health professionals and ministry leaders as a way to meet the heartfelt mental health needs impacting both churches and our culture. Take a listen to this thought-provoking conversation.
“I am disabled. For years that was so hard to admit. I couldn’t mention out loud my neurodivergence. I whispered about my post-traumatic stress disorder, insisting ‘I’m better now.’ I was a champion for the disabled who didn’t want to talk about her own disabilities. It was disingenuous, but I didn’t know how to come to terms with the fact that I was disabled. I was still scared that admitting my disability publicly would convince people I was not able to do anything.” Joanna French writes on her experience with disability.
Beth sits down with the always delightful Marie Kuck, who has a special invitation for our listeners for a behind-the-scenes tour of Make ‘m Smile in Orlando.
In today's episode, Sandra chats with Tracy McElhattan, PhD about how to apply universal design for learning principles to our children's ministry classes so everyone is included and engaged!
The opportunity to apply to speak is open to any and all mature Christians with important or innovative thoughts or ideas to help grow or advance the disability ministry movement. We encourage leaders doing important work in relative obscurity lacking the connections or platforms to make their work better known throughout the church to apply.
Is there a specific situation or environment or activity that is stressful to one particular child in your ministry area, but is not a challenge to others? Social stories are not a new concept for students on the autism spectrum. But, perhaps you’ve never considered using them in the church setting. In this week’s episode, Beth shares examples of a few social stories to add to your toolbox.
As a research psychologist, guest blogger, Robert Crosby, has been studying children’s ministry for about ten years. In nearly every church, there are hurting kids struggling with feelings of worthlessness and rejection. To reach these kids, we must be intentional. We must use every tool and opportunity available—especially unstructured playtime—to show these kids how much they matter to God and to us.
On behalf of our entire Key Ministry team, it’s my privilege to welcome you to join us for Disability and the Church, the largest live in-person disability ministry conference in North America. This year’s conference is being hosted at Bay Presbyterian Church on April 28th and 29th, 2023, with pre-conference intensives offered on April 27th. Disability and the Church is presented by Key Ministry with the support of the Tim Tebow Foundation.
LifeWay Research released the results of an updated study exploring U.S. Protestant pastors’ experiences with mental illness and the support their churches offer to affected individuals and families.
Much of our focus this fall has been on development of new strategies for advancing disability ministry in an environment where established church leaders are struggling to maintain their existing ministries with more demands, fewer volunteers and less money. I’ll share some of those ideas in my next post. Here’s what we’ve been able to accomplish thus far in 2021.
