Same Lake, Different Boat by Stephanie O. Hubach
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I had this book on my shelf for a while before I read it. I didn't know much about the author, and the subtitle, Coming Alongside People Touched by Disability, had me expecting it to be a book full of anecdotes about families with special needs.
I didn't know that Hubach leads the special needs ministry at her church or that she is the Special Needs Director for Mission to North America (Presbyterian Church in America). I was expecting a great book written by a mom of a child with a disability - which this is - but it offers so much more than I expected because of Hubach's varied perspectives. While one of the three parts is distinctly family-focused, the first provides a foundation for thinking about disabilities within the church and the last clearly and convincingly details what special needs ministry could look like in your church. See the section and chapter breakdown below:
Here's a great interview with her that gives a glimpse into the content of the book.
So why do I consider this the best special needs ministry book available? As Hubach outlines in the introduction, most books out there fall into three camps: (1) experiential (personal stories/reflections of living life with special needs), (2) motivational (rallying cries to engage in disability ministry), and (3) programmatic (manuals describing how to do it).
(Side note: I would suggest that there's a fourth too: (4) theological (simple exegesis or more systemic hermeneutics of scripture in light of disability). Sadly, though, books in this category tend to suggest that all present theological understandings exclude those with disabilities, arguing that we need to create an entirely new understanding of scripture framed around the issue of disability. I strongly disagree with that perspective. Our present theology isn't failing to include people with special needs; we, in our sinfulness, do that on our own. The gospel isn't lacking; our application of it is. We don't need new theology; we need right application of existing sound theology.)
This book is different. In her words, "it is the compilation of what we have come to understand is true as a result of actively engaging in the struggle" of "wresting with God and his Word, with the realities of family life, and with the all-too-frequent inadequacies of the broader Christian community's response" (p. 16). I am so incredibly thankful that Hubach was willing to write it, sharing the results of that wrestling in a authentic and useful way. She argues that we're not all in the same boat or each in completely different lakes but rather, as the title suggests, in the same lake on different boats, "essentially the same but experientially different" (p. 37).
Here are some nuggets from the text:
I didn't know that Hubach leads the special needs ministry at her church or that she is the Special Needs Director for Mission to North America (Presbyterian Church in America). I was expecting a great book written by a mom of a child with a disability - which this is - but it offers so much more than I expected because of Hubach's varied perspectives. While one of the three parts is distinctly family-focused, the first provides a foundation for thinking about disabilities within the church and the last clearly and convincingly details what special needs ministry could look like in your church. See the section and chapter breakdown below:
Part 1: About the Foundations
1. On Truth: The Four Missing Words
2. On Identification: Same Lake, Different Boat
3. On Respect: Common Grace, Special Needs
4. On Relentlessness: Dante's Circles of Disability
5. On Restoration: Thy Kingdom Come
Part 2: About the Families
6. On Coming to Terms with a New Reality
7. On Negotiating a Path to Acceptance
8. On Living a New Normal Life
9. On Grappling with the Great Opportunity
Part 3: About Facilitation in the Church
10. On Hospitality: No Room at the Inn
11. On Belonging: Same Body, Different Parts
12. On Wisdom: Questions Every Church Needs to Answer
13. On Change: Revolution or Reformation?
Here's a great interview with her that gives a glimpse into the content of the book.
So why do I consider this the best special needs ministry book available? As Hubach outlines in the introduction, most books out there fall into three camps: (1) experiential (personal stories/reflections of living life with special needs), (2) motivational (rallying cries to engage in disability ministry), and (3) programmatic (manuals describing how to do it).
(Side note: I would suggest that there's a fourth too: (4) theological (simple exegesis or more systemic hermeneutics of scripture in light of disability). Sadly, though, books in this category tend to suggest that all present theological understandings exclude those with disabilities, arguing that we need to create an entirely new understanding of scripture framed around the issue of disability. I strongly disagree with that perspective. Our present theology isn't failing to include people with special needs; we, in our sinfulness, do that on our own. The gospel isn't lacking; our application of it is. We don't need new theology; we need right application of existing sound theology.)
This book is different. In her words, "it is the compilation of what we have come to understand is true as a result of actively engaging in the struggle" of "wresting with God and his Word, with the realities of family life, and with the all-too-frequent inadequacies of the broader Christian community's response" (p. 16). I am so incredibly thankful that Hubach was willing to write it, sharing the results of that wrestling in a authentic and useful way. She argues that we're not all in the same boat or each in completely different lakes but rather, as the title suggests, in the same lake on different boats, "essentially the same but experientially different" (p. 37).
Here are some nuggets from the text:
- But the American Heritage Dictionary definition of what it means to identify with another is much broader than this. It reads: "To associate or affiliate oneself closely with a person or group." This definition does not necessarily imply comfort or identification that is easy - just identification that is purposeful. (p. 37-38)
- Notice that the model for mutual reliance in Christ's church is more intimate that same lake, different boat. It is same body, different parts. (p. 41)
- ...when we truly understand grace, we realize that the poor, the prisoners, the blind, and the oppressed are us. (p. 47)
- In order to extend grace to others in relationship, we have to deeply understand our own need for it. You can't give grace if you haven't received it. (p. 48)
- Our actions ought to declare, "You are incredibly valuable!" to everyone we meet. (p. 49)
- When people see us acknowledge our frailties and intentionally engage others in the areas of their brokenness, we live out the gospel of grace in powerful ways. (p. 49)
- Have you ever sensed that while lip service is given to the sanctity of human life, those who actually relentlessly uphold it in their daily lives are forgotten? (p. 58)
- When healing is not in the will of God's providence, and help is not enough - and it never will be in this lifetime - then hope is always a present reality. (p. 75)
- To enjoin itself effectively to the struggles of a family that is just beginning to navigate the waters of disability, the community of believers needs to understand what the family is experiencing and learn to identify what the family needs so that the church may respond to those needs in meaningful ways. (p. 84)