Hole in the Church Seminars

In a country like India, that is bound in the caste system and generations of tradition and culture, people with special needs do not fit in and are not part of the accepted norms of life. Differently-abled people are often looked upon as less than, the unfortunate, cursed, and are excluded from the happenings of society. The tragedy is that even the Indian church seems to act more like the culture it is surrounded by, rather than representing Christ.

This Hole in the Church has been on the heart of LCMI for a while, and we as a ministry feel led by the Lord to address this prevalent, dire need. Our goal with this seminar is to train pastors in how they can include and incorporate children and adults with special needs into the life of a church and represent Christ to this marginalized, forgotten, yet precious, people.

The seminar covers the heart of God and the impact of the Gospel for those with special needs. It highlights the fact that the body of Christ needs all its members as the Bible says in 1 Corinthians 12. Church leaders are challenged with this quote from Chuck Swindoll, "Disabled people are not in our way; they are a part of the way". Not only is the heart of the issue addressed, but this teaching gives practical steps that a church family can take to integrate those with special needs into the congregation such as providing transportation for them and identifying their giftings.

It is our prayer that the fellowship of all believers, both with and without special needs, will become a reality in the Indian church as in Acts 2.