Wednesday, January 19, 2011

"The One Who Danced"

We continue today with devotions written by church members and mission partners to help our congregation prepare for our upcoming annual outreach event.

The One Who Danced
Super Saturday is a ministry of over 30 years at Trinity on the Hill established for and with special needs adults. Many of you have faithfully served food, sung & danced, and helped us extend this ministry of hospitality over the years. When I think of that monthly gathering I can’t help but think of music, food, and of an inner joy that breaks out in exciting ways!

Read Psalm 96

My grandson was about 6 years old. He had come to stay with us for a week and it just happened to be a Super Saturday weekend. We were having one of the Friday night dances. I told my grandson we were going to help with a ministry at our church and have a dance for handicapped adults. I'm not sure he completely understood what I meant by handicapped because he asked "what do you mean, do they have like broke legs?" I replied by telling him they didn't have broken legs but some did have walkers and some had wheelchairs. To be honest, I wasn't sure how he would respond to this particular ministry .

When we arrived I told him we would be greeters. We stood just outside the doors of Wesley Hall. As our first guests arrived we greeted them and after they were inside my grandson whispered "Grand Mommy, was that one handicapped?" I said "yes." He replied, "I couldn't tell."

As the next guest arrived, we greeted them and they greeted us in return. After they went in Wesley Hall he whispered, "Grand Mommy, was that one handicapped?" I said "yes." He replied, "I couldn't tell, they could talk."

Then, a tall slim girl with a severe limp came walking across the parking lot. My grandson looked up at me and said, "Grand Mommy, look! That one dances when she walks!"

That night, I learned one of the most valuable lessons of my life. Through the innocence of this precious 6-year-old child, I realized how I had labeled and categorized people. I did it with my grandson. This child did not see anything except beauty in each and every person that came to our Super Saturday Dance. Makes you wonder if that's not how God sees each and every one of us!

When I took my grandson home and we told his mother all about our week and the Super Saturday dance, he asked me to tell his mother which one was his favorite at Super Saturday. I said, "I don't know." And he replied, "you know, the one that dances when she walks!"

Prayer Request
Pray for Super Saturday, for the faithful workers, and for our friends who so enjoy this ministry and have so much to teach us about life and faith.

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