Spotlight on BeLoved

BeLoved is home to communities of welcome and worship for people with additional needs and their families. They had a very special time over Easter, and Sharon, ministry lead for BeLoved, shares about it here.

9TH APRIL

Both Jonny and I sank down into the chairs in the office and breathed a tired sigh. “Well that went well!”  And indeed it had. The pupils from Millgate had visited us again. The same ones that came twice at Christmas. This time to bless MOLO at Easter, making up bags of Easter eggs, serving refreshments, and running a little activity making hand and foot prints on a ‘First Easter’ card. 

Later on in the day I found myself reflecting that the session was almost uneventful - with no deep and meaningful conversations or big dramatic happenings, just young people stepping up and out of their comfort zone to bless others. Young people who are more used to walking away from challenges were organising the environment for the mums and babies, stopping their lively game to gently roll the ball to the baby, kindly and gently painting a baby’s foot, asking the mum which card they would like, waiting for their team member to open their envelope so they could carry on the egg hunt together and giving the blank one to the one who had had the least turns. Hmmm, just maybe it was quietly eventful and the prayed for Holy Spirit was quietly at work, enabling them to flourish in a place where they are BeLoved. 

10TH APRIL

Trolley piled high, we arrived at Values for an Easter session with adults with learning disabilities and the helpers and session leaders.

A warm up session with the parachute, adding a weighty ball and attempting to coach them in the technique to keep the ball rolling round the outside of the chute. "This is really difficult", I thought to myself as the ball shot off towards the teacups. Bad idea! But we tried again and suddenly somehow the ball was rolling round and round.

They had found a rhythm, an unexpected gentleness in their movements and we held our breath concentrating on our part until the inevitable happened and the ball once again took flight.

Crafts and drama and activities followed as we looked at the Easter story. There were moments of surprise and moments they listened in transfixed silence as the story unfolded. Another day of seeming uneventfulness but with so much beauty and depth. 

I questioned what I had been looking for and how my expectations could have caused me to miss what was going on beyond the surface. 

Where do you know those with additional needs? Where might you ask God to help you to ‘see beyond’ the obvious to see the beauty and depth beneath?  

BeLoved.SO