With Ministries

"Many churches struggle to engage children with disabilities in worship and prayer, and With Ministries seeks to help churches respond to this need through the following initiatives: designing a framework for accessible, intergenerational worship that engages and excites children with disabilities and their families, partnering long-term with diverse churches and families to collaboratively learn about accessible worship and prayer practices, developing a practical portfolio of guidance resources for churches and families on this journey, examining the reciprocal impact of accessible worship and prayer practices on children with disabilities, their parents, and others within the local congregation, and extending counsel to other Lilly grantees on how their projects and ideas may also be inclusive of children with disabilities and their families through an integrated set of activities and partnerships aimed toward achieving six primary goals: Understanding the distinct (and ordinary) needs of children with disabilities and their families related to participation in worship and prayer Building the commitment, capacity, and creativity of churches to do this work incredibly well Engaging hundreds of new churches in making noticeable changes in their worship practices Nurturing a vibrant Christian faith among children with complex disabilities through child-centered worship and prayer practices Capturing the richness and reciprocity of engaging in worship and prayer together as one body Strengthening Friendship Ministries’ capacity to support a larger number of churches nationally"