Turning In God’s Direction

I was in the bathroom at church the other day, and I reached for a paper towel after I washed my hands.  I always struggle with paper towel dispensers for some unknown reason (just like Allyson in “Mom’s Night Out”) but this wasn’t even an automatic one that couldn’t “sense” my presence.  It was an old-fashioned manual one with a knob you had to turn.  I was persistently trying to turn it the way I thought it should go and it just wasn’t working.  So, I took a step back, looked at it closely, and realized the grooves were made to turn in the opposite direction.  Once I turned it the way it was designed to go, and not the way I thought it should go, it worked perfectly.  And I thought to myself, how often do we unintentionally do the same thing in ministry?  We have a way we think things should be done, and we try so hard to make them work that way, but it’s just not the way God has designed it to work.  However, when we take a step back and look more closely at how it would work best for the people we’re trying to serve, we see that leading ministry differently is the key to including everyone.  So often we try to use a “one size fits all” approach to ministry, but – as we all know- we are not all one size.

As I’ve mentioned before, when he was younger my son Shawn struggled to sit and listen quietly on his own at church.  However, he learned and grew so much better with a one-on-one “buddy” and the freedom to move his body when he needed to, instead of being forced to sit and be still.  My daughter, Maggie, gets overstimulated when it gets too loud during worship, but if she’s allowed to wear headphones, she can focus on the worship instead of the volume.  As far as our own ministries are concerned, maybe this means looking more closely at the environments we offer, or the curriculum we use.  It’s being mindful of using Universal Design to accommodate everyone, not just the people who learn and interact in the “typical” way.  Creating inclusive environments also helps those who are more traditional learners learn empathy for those who learn differently and helps them to be on the lookout for ways to support their peers.  I would encourage all of us as we’re praying over our ministries to ask God to show us which way to “turn the knob” that allows the best outcome for everyone!

Want To Know More

If you’d like to know more about how to create an inclusive environment, check out this free video training on how to be sensory-friendly!  If you’d like to know more about how to teach in a way that includes everyone, see our resources on Universal Design for Learning. It is full of practical ways to teach the Bible to people of all abilities!