Engaging Disability With The Gospel

Engaging Disability With The Gospel is a missional partnership of Mission to North America, an agency of the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA). Engaging Disability serves PCA congregations and presbyteries in developing ministry to people touched by disability as an integral part of the Church.

Our vision: To see the body of Christ made more complete through evangelizing and authentically integrating people with differing abilities into the life and mission of the PCA.

Our mission: To engage people touched by disability with the gospel, for their salvation and spiritual growth and to equip churches to enfold them into all areas of congregational life and ministry.

Our focus: People touched by disability and 1,875+ PCA congregations

Engaging Disability serves, equips, and encourages people with disabilities, their families, and the church. Our primary focus is on children, teens, and adults who have disabling conditions, but we are just as passionate about families and others who care for people with disabilities. We take the gospel to them and help them apply the gospel to all areas of their lives. We want to see them come to Christ and grow in all aspects of their faith.

Our second main focus is the church. We come alongside each congregation uniquely as it seeks to foster opportunities for spiritual growth in its families touched by disability. We help them apply the gospel in ways that embrace people touched by disability and enfold them into their congregations. We want to see churches respond to individuals and their needs with authentic, mutual relationships, as well as be confident in their abilities to make needed adaptations.

We serve using in-person, video and phone consultations; onsite comprehensive ministry assessments; ministry tools and resources, and training events; connecting people and congregations; and promoting opportunities for people touched by disability to serve others.

We believe that how disability ministry is approached is crucial. It is easy to approach it by focusing on what practical help people need and how we can serve them. It’s not wrong to want to serve and meet practical needs. Those are important functions of disability ministry. But providing assistance to meet practical needs is not necessarily the first place to start, and it certainly isn’t the place to end.  

Scripture teaches that “the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable.” (1 Corinthians 12:22-23). People with disabilities need to be enfolded into every aspect of church body life. They need the body of Christ, and the body of Christ needs them! We don’t encourage churches to establish separate, designated ministries into which folks with disabilities are funneled. We believe ministry is most effective when the existing ministries of the church work with families to make needed adaptations and accommodations. Then, all members—of all abilities—meet one another’s needs and, as a result, know Christ more deeply.