P.U.R.E. Ministry Project

Our children's minister gave me some information (thanks, Bonnie!) about Zachariah's Way, which is a ministry "dedicated to ministering the grace of Jesus Christ to special needs children, adolescents, adults, and their families." They have a project called The P.U.R.E. Ministry Project. Here's a brief description from their website (http://www.pureministryproject.com/):

A wakeup call for Christians -
Transforming the way we think

A Christian Awakening, a Nationwide Project to Increase Awareness of and Ministry to People with Disabilities and their Families in our Churches

We're certainly not so shallow to believe or presume that a change of terminology is going to change everything or that it fixes all the problems. But, we believe that most people (yes, even Christians!) automatically dismiss any subject related to disabilities or special needs, simply because they don't think it has any meaning or pertinence to them! We at Zachariah's Way believe that we must get past this mindset (in actuality, heart set) of solely identifying people by what is wrong with them (we even go so far as to constantly identify people by their diagnosis, e.g. there's that little AUTISTIC boy). We believe it is past the time that we constantly and consistently refer to these sweet, blessed people and their families by labels that are certainly not edifying and at the same time, in many cases, actually serve to misinform and many times actually scare people away from ministry opportunities! Again, we're not so naive to think by using different words that everything will change. We do believe the change is necessary and P.U.R.E. is a much better, positive, and edifying term embodying spiritual truth than what we so commonly use today.

Therefore, as part of this effort, we are introducing a new, positive and accurate description and word for a person with disabilities, P.U.R.E.

We now invite you to join us in the P.U.R.E. world:

P

P erfectly created by a loving sovereign God, designed for His purposes.

U

U nique in his or her own gifts, blessings, talents, and desires.

R

R eceptive and responsive to our communication, touch, and acts of love.

E

E ternal - There are No Disabled Souls.

~~~~~~~~~~

I love this!! I have to admit, although I am not offended by people referring to Asher as a "Down syndrome child", I wish he weren't identified in that way. He wouldn't be "the cancer baby" or the "cerebral palsy child," would he? I make a conscious effort to say "children with Down syndrome" in the hopes that people will catch on, but it's something that folks have been saying for a long, long time. And, I know that the people who say it don't think of Asher as "that Down syndrome kid." Just a thought...

If you have time, read through the info on the website, especially "Why Zachariah's Way?" which tells the story of Zachariah, the grandson of the ministry's founder.

I feel a ministry coming on... like maybe a Down syndrome association for central Louisiana... or a family support group... Now that our church, The Gathering Place, is making a new start, it's time to be a place where the "disabled" can also gather and feel at home and included.

By the way, I am speaking to our church about Reece's Rainbow this Sunday. Please say a prayer for me... mainly that I can get through the thing without crying!