I recently heard that Faith United Methodist Church in North Canton, OH was holding a “Messy Church” service. I was instantly drawn to it because of the name even though I didn’t know what all was involved. Messiness, or real life, seems to be intentionally programmed out of most church services. Churches want to remove...
Ryan WolfeIt is Ryan’s passion to equip and empower churches, organizations, and individuals to reach their disability communities for Jesus. Ryan, Director of Program Development, comes to Ability Ministry with 15+ years of ministry experience. He previously worked at First Christian Church in Canton, Ohio as their full-time Disability Pastor. He also worked as a...
On the front page of our website, on conference displays, and on the front of our business cards you will consistently find the following three words: Finding, Belonging, Together. If you are reading this page you are probably curious as to what these words are all about. These three words represent the Vision of Ability...
After reading the last four blogs in this series, you may be able to identify what approach your church or ministry currently embraces. You may even have a better idea of what some of your deficits are. But when you want to make a philosophical shift in your approach to disability ministry, the big question...
When my son was three, I clearly remember how excited he was to leave his highchair and sit in an adult-sized chair at the dinner table. Sure, he had to use a booster seat, but he was proud to have graduated to a “big chair” like his parents. My daughter, Zoe, however, was not quite...
Before my sixteenth birthday, I vividly remember sitting behind the wheel of my family’s Ford Taurus. We were in the McDonald’s parking lot just a few blocks from our home. At this point, I had received no formal instructions on how to drive, but my father wanted to give me a taste of what it...
Growing up at First Christian Church in Canton, Ohio, there was a culture of competition fueled by our Bible Bowl program. This program was a Bible-based academic challenge, and it was a big part of my life through my teen years until I decided to leave the program to focus on high school sports. After...
When my family moved into our home on Northfield Avenue, we loved our large backyard where deer routinely wandered by our windows. At the time, our children were young, and they marveled at the deer as they passed by. Our family was so fascinated by the deer that we put out salt-licks to coax them...
Is being in the presence of the King enough for me? The account of Mephibosheth in 2 Samuel chapter 9 ends with, “And Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, because he was always at the king’s table; he was lame in both feet.” The first time I read this verse I cringed a little bit. I would...
Don’t believe the lie We’ve been following the account of King David and Mephibosheth in 2 Samuel 9. When King David summons Mephibosheth, he is found living in a place called Lo-Debar. Lo-Debar was not a nice place. It was isolated, dry, and desolate. Not your ideal vacation destination. If you were born in Lo-Debar,...
