Today was just a Monday for most people.  Rains came in mid-afternoon to throw off our schedules.  Kids went back to school for a short week prior to Easter break.  Summer is almost here as families are locking up their plans during those three months.  News was slow to come by which may be a good thing when you consider our recent string of bad news.  It appeared to be just another Monday.  But for one group of people this was a big day for them.  World Autism Day takes place below the radar of most people.  It made my Monday far more than just another day.


Autism is a daily reality for me.  It is one of those issues misunderstood by more than a few.  My youngest lives with that diagnosis.  We all join him in his journey wherever that may take him.  Not every person has much patience for this calling to be his dad.  Church people are not immune from ignorance.  One person suggested my failings were due to my attention to him.  My guess is he quickly realized his suddenly precarious situation.  No desk was going to stop me from answering that opinion.  Someone recently wondered aloud if I should just go put him in some facility now.  Anger is not one of my prevalent emotions by nature.  Be sure that rage runs through me when someone displays that total lack of compassion.  Most people are gracious when we make our trips around town.  He is not always easy to handle but we just keep trying.  Who knew that his arrival in my world could be so profound in so many ways?


Society can be measured by how it treats the weak, powerless or disabled.  Government aid is not the sole weight to determine value.  Jesus comes along in a world driven by those with various tools of power but acts contrary to popular notion.  Sinners of all types would be welcomed by Him in the ebb and flow of ministry.  Those outcast for whatever reason not only received salvation but also affirmation from the Savior.  Among those last few words of His life is a statement on forgiving one who lived contrary to God's will until the end.  People who have disabilities matter greatly to God.  One of the great joys of my career involves finding ways to include such students years ago in Louisiana.  One counted numbers for us each Sunday morning.  Another helped out in doing ministry.  Some may find such folks to be a nuisance but they are a great gift of God in our world.  It says more about us if we do not recognize that fact.  We are the ones blind and dumb not those we see as inferior.


I laugh when people seem to have the idea they are normal compared to those like my son or his classmates.  Everyone on the planet is weird.  None of us escape that ailment.  This is why grace matters much.  God accepts us on the basis of His mercy.  He then says we are to extend that mercy to others.  It's my view that we forget or choose to neglect that grace in our zeal to feel superior.  Autism serves as a stark reminder to me that every person matters to God.  You matter to God.  Now we just need to learn how to connect those two truths together.  


Bro. Trey