Disability ministry: It's not just for churches in the big city

According to this report recently released by the US Census Bureau, disabilities among children are more likely to be found outside of metro areas.

Here are some noteworthy quotes from the report:

• "About 5.0 percent of school-aged children living in metro areas across the United States had a disability (Figure 1, Table 2), compared with 6.3 percent of children living outside metro areas. Children, both inside and outside metro areas, were more likely to experience cognitive difficulties than other disability types (Figure 1). Approximately, 3.8 percent of children in metro areas had a cognitive difficulty while 4.8 percent of children outside metro areas had a cognitive difficulty." 
• "Children living outside metro areas were also more likely to have hearing, vision, and ambulatory difficulties than children in metro areas."
  
• "Fourteen states—Alabama, Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Maine, Missouri, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Vermont—had lower disability rates for children living in metro areas compared with those living outside metro areas. Nebraska and Wisconsin were the only states with statistically greater disability rates among children in metro areas compared to those outside metro areas."

Why bother bringing this up? Well, my observation has been that most established disability ministries can be found at churches in or near a metro area. According to these statistics, though, they are just as needed - if not more so - outside of metro areas.

I know families who travel long distances to attend our church and others, simply because that's how far they have to drive to find a place that will welcome their family member with special needs. And I know other families that have given up on finding a local church that will love and embrace them.

This is a great need.

Thankfully, we have a great provider.