When our son was 6 or 7 years old he was trying to explain something to his mom. She was listening hard but she couldn’t understand one word. Kids with Down syndrome often have a hard time saying words clearly.
Finally, my wife Deb said, “Paul, can you say it with different words?” He gave a sigh and said, “You know, dogs with spots!” Dalmatian is a pretty big word for a little kid.
Paul has always been able to communicate pretty well. My wife and I have been involved with kids with various disabilities. When we hear about a child who is non-verbal, we know that’s a huge problem. It’s a big thing not to be able to communicate with your own words.
When our son was very young we would wonder if he would be able to speak and if we could understand what he said. We started with sign language, which was a big help. Paul had much greater receptive language (how he understood language) but his expressive language was delayed.
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Gradually he learned some words and we were so happy to hear him speak. Paul has three older sisters. It was a great joy to hear them all learn to speak. When Paul could speak we were even more thrilled because we knew how special it was for some folks to be able to communicate.
What a blessing when people in a family speak to each other. I run into many families in which one family member won’t speak to another. Some families have a member who can’t speak and other families who can speak but won’t. I wish all families would appreciate the ability to speak as a great joy like some of us who learned the hard way.
God has been trying to communicate with his family for a long time. God has even encouraged many people to translate his word in the Bible into all the languages of the world. Communication is key in all of life. Of course, one half of communication is for us to listen.
God not only gave us his word but many symbols to communicate the faith. For many years people couldn’t read so the churches taught stories of the Bible in stained glass windows. Perhaps the greatest symbol God has given us is the cross on which Jesus died. The cross is still a powerful way to communicate his love for us.
In Chicago there was a church with a very tall steeple and on the top was a cross. One day, the cross, needed work and a man was hanging from the cross. On the street a crowd had gathered to watch. For years no one had noticed the cross until a man was hanging from it.
Prayer: Our Lord, what a blessing to be able to communicate with others. For some it’s not very easy. We’re so glad you have communicated your love to us. Amen
The Rev. Dan Safarik retired as a full-time pastor at St. Luke United Methodist Church in Lincoln and now serves part time at St. Mark’s UMC in Lincoln. Email him at dsafarik@stmarks.org