Women with Mental Disabilities Used as Human Bombs

Okay, it's been a few weeks since I posted, but reading this could not have been a better impetus for me:

Militants turn disabled into human bombs

This blog is about one clear message: people with weaknesses are not burdens - they are blessings. They can teach us, help us, and minister to us.

They are not to be pitied, looked down upon, coddled, or treated as anything less than an image-bearer of the Creator. That's why I am actually outraged, and this takes a bit of doing for me, at what these militants have done. But, rather than subject you to my disgust, I will simply post some of what has transpired:

Two mentally disabled women were strapped with explosives Friday and sent into busy Baghdad markets, where they were blown up by remote control, a top Iraqi government official said.

The bombs killed at least 98 people and wounded more than 200 at two popular pet markets on the holiest day of the week for Muslims, authorities said.

In both bombings, the attackers were mentally disabled women whose explosive belts were remotely detonated, Gen. Qasim Atta, spokesman for Baghdad's security plan, told state television.

So what should my response to this be? Anger and outrage come to mind the most quickly. But what is the response God calls us to?

The Lord has His ways and His time. The Lord will judge and will bring down His justice upon those who mock Him. And the Lord will not be mocked.

How has the Lord been mocked here? These two women, in their weakness, and as recognized members of their community, bear the image of the Almighty. Surely, God has used them for His purposes to declare His glory. To use them, destroy them, and throw away their lives in a successful effort to kill others, is a mockery of God, of His image, and of the people He so purposefully created.

More than anything in His Creation, the wonder of humanity speaks eloquently about His glory, power, mercy, and love. To destroy another human, particularly ones who cannot defend themselves, is both cowardly and a blasphemous act against the kingdom of God.

Another Vander Plaats?

A few years ago I woke up to a sign in my lawn that read "Vander Plaats for Governor." I thought that was very wierd. But it got wierder. Looking into it, I found that a Bob Vander Plaats, who appeared to be a distant cousin, was indeed running for Governor of Iowa at the time (2002) and also happened to run an organization in Sioux City, Iowa, called Opportunities Unlimited in Sioux City, Iowa, and he had a son, Lucas, with developmental disabilities.

Well, earlier this year, Bob, whom I've never met or talked to, released a book about life with his son. You can buy the book by clicking here. I also am including an excerpt from an excerpt that I found on a pregnancy resource center website (http://www.heartlink.org):

Lucas' days may not be as many or as normal as we would like, but I am confident that they have been purposeful. His life has inspired me to seek my own purpose with passion and to motivate others to do the same. Lucas has taught me the importance of living my “dash” to its fullest. [Bob goes on to describe that "dash' is a reference to the extent of our lives on this earth]

It's nice to see another Vander Plaats that looks at people with disabilities as having an equally vital role in God's kingdom. I urge you to see their role in your life today, and if you can to buy this book.

Over 5,000 People Visit Melissa's World

Over 5,000 people have been blessed by a video we made back in 2002. Then, Melissa was a 9-year-old girl with cerebral palsy whose smile lit up a room. Today, Melissa is older, and she struggles with new challenges as she grows. But, her smile is still more than enough to brighten your day.

We have used Melissa's video to tell donors who they are helping, to let prospective parents know what can happen when their child comes to Elim, and through YouTube, we are showing the whole world how we should look at people with disabilities.

Will you please celebrate this occasion with us? Walk back with us just a few years and share in the joy, the struggle, and the blessing of Melissa's World. Pass along this video to all your friends; invite as many people as you can to experience her world:

Why Not Help People with Disabilities?

Alex Haxton, Director of Operations for World Emergency Relief writes for ChristianToday.com about his experiences with disability centers in Romania. In reflecting on his uplifting experiences there, Haxton juxtaposes the seeming indifference Christians have to the pressing needs of people with disabilities. He asks:

Did Jesus not call for the children to be able to come to Him? Did He not spend more time with the needy, the lame, the sick and those that society would prefer to reject or at least ignore? I believe that we ignore disabled people at our peril, especially if we are Christians.

Can it be right that we will give our money to feed or educate a child in Africa but we will not give to save the life of a disabled child in Romania or to help provide a wheelchair for a child in Guatemala?

Let us at least examine our own hearts and our attitudes. Jesus went over the lake to release a human being from a severe disability. How far will you go? How far will I go?

At Elim, we have been blessed with thousands of people who have been called to care for those with disabilities, both here and abroad. Some of them do the work, and some of them come alongside the work through their financial gifts.

Today, Elim needs to raise $1.4 million by the June 3, 2008, and $400,000 just in the next thirty-two days. You can help. These questions Haxton asks, like "How far will you go?" - that's a very relevant question. What does God ask of you? Where does He call you to serve? In fact, those are big questions, so let's make it simple:

What can you do today? Look to the right of this post. You'll see a little bar that has a picture of one of Elim's children, along with links to watch a video about Elim and, most importantly, an opportunity to donate. We do need you today. Imagine what you can accomplish at Elim through your gift.

You don't have to imagine. When you donate, we'll tell you what your gift accomplishes. So, please donate today!

Wallace & Gromit on Disabilities

An article from the Multiple Sclerosis section of a Medical News website talks about the new website www.creature discomforts.org, a site with ads created by the team that does all those Wallace & Gromit shows and movies. From the article:

The disability charity has teamed up with Aardman Animations to create Creature Discomforts, based on the much-loved Creature Comforts series but featuring the hallmark Plasticine characters voiced by people with disabilities including multiple sclerosis (MS).

The characters include wheelchair-user Peg the Hedgehog, Spud the Slug in his mobility scooter and Tim the Tortoise on crutches and carry the voices and experiences of real people living with MS.

Matthew Trainer, Head of Communications at the MS Society, said: "Creature Discomforts will raise issues faced by people living with disabilities in a way that has not been done before. We hope this will challenge the discrimination and ignorance that people with MS face."

The animations use the genuine voices of a number of disabled people describing in their own words the negative attitudes and barriers they experience, which separate them from society.

Please visit the Creature Discomforts website to see all the ads. And then, visit Elim's YouTube site to watch some of our videos too!

Audrey's Kentucky Wheelchair Gets Rolled Away

Friends of Elim may recall that just over a year ago, Elim student Stephen Sichak had his wheelchair stolen from the end of his driveway, along with his school stuff. The items had been placed there just a few minutes prior to get ready for the school bus to pick him up.

Today, I read about a 8-year-old Kentucky girl who had her wheelchair stolen too, just as we come up on Christmas. You can read the article by clicking here. My hope today is that Audrey gets a wheelchair (sounds like a local family is helping them out), and that the thief who took Audrey's wheelchair has a change of heart.

Stephen never got his wheelchair back, and they never found the person who took it, according to his mom, Erin. But they are all back to normal.

Last year, that story brought supporters out to help Elim, and maybe you can join them this year. You can go to Elim's "donate" page to help out at this important time.

Down Syndrome Causes Abortions

In calling for a presidential disability-focused debate, David Rundle posed this as one of his most pressing questions:

When potential parents discover their unborn child has Down syndrome, they abort it 85 percent of the time. Are you concerned by that?

I don't know whether or not the next American president is concerned about that, but I wish he was. Abortion is no doubt a difficult issue. Most people acknowledge that you are killing a human through abortion (and that is certainly how I feel), but we start to diverge when it comes to whether or not that act (or murder) is right.

Here's what the "85%" fact above tells us though - it tells us that those parents-to-be are asking questions about the value of that life. It seems to me they are asking:

1) Who would want to live a life with Down Syndrome?
2) Why would I/we want to go through life as the parent(s) of a child with Down Syndrome?
3) What prospects are there, really, for this person's life, when he's stuck with this disorder?

Now, I will not be naive and say, "Living with Down Syndrome is a joy and utterly painless." But I will tell you, with the experience of knowing dozens of families who have struggled with the effects of Down Syndrome and other developmental disabilities, that disabilities are not equal to, and do not deserve, the death sentence, and abortion is a death sentence.

A person is not defined by their disability, and when people abort children with a disability, they are doing exactly that, letting the disability define the person.

More than that, a disability requires struggle. Struggle requires perseverance. Perseverance, and the reliance upon God that it requires, are what brings God glory. Therefore, we testify to His strength through our weakness. When 85% of people choose death instead of life for a child with a disability, they ignore the blessings and life education that God will provide.