I was listening to the Lord the other day..it was His turn to talk. ;0} I was talking with Him about Adam and I don't remember exactly what I had been saying to Him, but His answer was; "You want to fix him, but did I say he was broken?"
That stopped me where I was. I didn't realize that I thought this way. I pray for Adam all the time, but realizing that I think he's broken revealed a great deal to me.
As I pursue a new direction in ministry for people with special needs, my understanding of how the Father sees them has deepened. I have always known that He loves them just the way they are, and that they are created in His image and likeness. I've come to understand that they are created with gifts and abilities from Him that we often don't see. One of these is their ability to know and understand God in ways that go beyond what I know. I see this in Adam.
So what did God mean in what He said to me? Did He mean that I shouldn't pray for Adam to be healed? NO. Healing is the children's bread (see Matthew 15:21-28) The point is that Adam isn't broken just because he's in need of healing. The Father sees him as whole. I need to see him the same way.
In Adam's spirit, he is complete. He knows and loves God. On the outside, he has many needs, but he is not broken. He is just in need. As I continue to pursue the Lord in this awareness, I know He'll teach me more. For now, I've settled inside as I continue to pray for him.
When a child is born with special needs, or becomes ill and then develops disabilities, the family's dreams for the child are crushed. They know he or she will never become the doctor, lawyer, teacher or parent that they were thinking about. Perhaps their child will never speak, walk or fully know them.There may be life long needs for medical interventions or surgery. There are many degrees of disability, and many depths of pain for the family. Our family knows this well, and each one of us deals with it in our own way. I wrote a bit about that recently.(Just One Of Those Days) It had to do with milestones that Adam will never reach. Like driving, or dating, or just hanging out with friends. But it's also his need for help with everyday living skills. Our desire is for him to be more independant, and over time, he will become more so, but he will always need someone to help him. He will never live on his own. I feel badly for him about that, but he doesn't seem to care. He likes it here. :0}
But what was my point?....oh yes, broken or not broken. When our dreams for Adam came crashing down, I guess I saw him as having gotten broken, because as far as we know, he was not disabled when he was born. He became seriously ill, and everything changed. Personally, I felt like we lost who he was supposed to be. I felt that he was cheated out of becoming everything he was meant to become. And our family was too. God stopped by the other day and gave me a reality check. Adam is not broken. He's fine the way he is. God knows him and he knows God. I have many typically developed friends and family whom I can't say the same about. It's a matter of perspectives, isn't it?
I like the Father's perspective on this subject much better than my own.
Have a great day and enjoy all the blessings in your life. Be thankful for all that you have. Love the ones around you to the fullest that you're able. They need that and so do you. Thanks for visiting here again. I hope you make a return trip soon.
That stopped me where I was. I didn't realize that I thought this way. I pray for Adam all the time, but realizing that I think he's broken revealed a great deal to me.
As I pursue a new direction in ministry for people with special needs, my understanding of how the Father sees them has deepened. I have always known that He loves them just the way they are, and that they are created in His image and likeness. I've come to understand that they are created with gifts and abilities from Him that we often don't see. One of these is their ability to know and understand God in ways that go beyond what I know. I see this in Adam.
So what did God mean in what He said to me? Did He mean that I shouldn't pray for Adam to be healed? NO. Healing is the children's bread (see Matthew 15:21-28) The point is that Adam isn't broken just because he's in need of healing. The Father sees him as whole. I need to see him the same way.
In Adam's spirit, he is complete. He knows and loves God. On the outside, he has many needs, but he is not broken. He is just in need. As I continue to pursue the Lord in this awareness, I know He'll teach me more. For now, I've settled inside as I continue to pray for him.
When a child is born with special needs, or becomes ill and then develops disabilities, the family's dreams for the child are crushed. They know he or she will never become the doctor, lawyer, teacher or parent that they were thinking about. Perhaps their child will never speak, walk or fully know them.There may be life long needs for medical interventions or surgery. There are many degrees of disability, and many depths of pain for the family. Our family knows this well, and each one of us deals with it in our own way. I wrote a bit about that recently.(Just One Of Those Days) It had to do with milestones that Adam will never reach. Like driving, or dating, or just hanging out with friends. But it's also his need for help with everyday living skills. Our desire is for him to be more independant, and over time, he will become more so, but he will always need someone to help him. He will never live on his own. I feel badly for him about that, but he doesn't seem to care. He likes it here. :0}
But what was my point?....oh yes, broken or not broken. When our dreams for Adam came crashing down, I guess I saw him as having gotten broken, because as far as we know, he was not disabled when he was born. He became seriously ill, and everything changed. Personally, I felt like we lost who he was supposed to be. I felt that he was cheated out of becoming everything he was meant to become. And our family was too. God stopped by the other day and gave me a reality check. Adam is not broken. He's fine the way he is. God knows him and he knows God. I have many typically developed friends and family whom I can't say the same about. It's a matter of perspectives, isn't it?
I like the Father's perspective on this subject much better than my own.
Have a great day and enjoy all the blessings in your life. Be thankful for all that you have. Love the ones around you to the fullest that you're able. They need that and so do you. Thanks for visiting here again. I hope you make a return trip soon.
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