The Newsletter for Through the Roof
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The Newsletter for Through the Roof
Disability inclusion framework – as easy as ABC
Tim Wood , our Through the Roof CEO , shares why we want to tell everyone about the ABC Journey of Disability Inclusion .
New video !
Remembering Sally
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Helping people to hear the word of God
No : 89 SPRING 2024
My daughter recently celebrated her birthday and wanted me to build a balloon arch for her party ! After blowing up 100 balloons , I realised I had no structure to help keep it upright . I had to get creative and use glue dots , plastic tape and plenty of string to assemble my work of art ! It took four hours ... Having a ready-made structure would have made it a lot easier .
At Through the Roof we thought providing a ready-made structure might be a helpful tool for churches and everyone on the journey of disability inclusion . So we are sharing a framework – the ABC model – which stands for Access , Belonging and Commission .
Through the Roof have now adopted this ABC model to ensure all our activities help us achieve one or more of the three ABC outcomes , enabling disabled people to be fully involved in God ’ s Kingdom .
The ABC is a simple three-part framework which forms a natural progression to help people think through how to include disabled people . It reflects the fact that disability inclusion in church and Christian life is a journey through different stages .
Stage 1 – Access : For everyone to know Jesus , with disabled people fully welcomed into Christian life .
The focus here is not just on a physical dimension , but ensuring disabled people can access God ’ s love , whether that is physically accessing a building or through having proximity to community and the ability to connect regularly with other Christians . Practical examples to consider include having Blue Badge parking available , level access to activities , accessible toilet , large print and hearing loop system .
Stage 2 – Belonging : For everyone to grow together as the family of God , with disabled people flourishing in community with others .
This looks at disabled people being more fully involved in the family of God and the life of the local church , finding a place of belonging and growing in relationship with God and others . Some practical questions : Are disabled members invited to church activities ? Can they be part of small groups ? Are they missed by others when they aren ’ t present ? Is the culture of the church one of acceptance for who people are , as well as encouraging them to be more fully the person God wants them to be ?
Stage 3 – Commission : For everyone to reflect Jesus , with disabled people making disciples , to the glory of God .
Finally , Commission is helping to equip and empower disabled people to use their gifts , skills and testimony to glorify God and share the Gospel .
Practical considerations : Is the church helping disabled people to identify their gifts ? Are they providing opportunities to use their gifts ? Are disabled people encouraged into positions of responsibility ? Are disabled people represented at leadership level in the church ?
One of the joys of our role at Through the Roof is that we get to journey alongside other at different stages of this process .
Help your church to take the next step on the ABC journey by downloading our free small group resource available at https :// linktr . ee / TTRresources and sharing it with others in your church or community .
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