Joni Eareckson Tada: Sharing Hope

Guest (Female): This is Shana on Joni Eareckson Tada sharing hope. Get ready to smile because today Joni has a real fun story.

Joni Eareckson Tada: It is about a man named Steve who really wanted to volunteer at one of our family retreats, but he wasn't quite sure he was up for the challenge in the test of dealing with somebody else's disability. Steve was afraid he'd make mistakes, say something stupid, or feel embarrassed because he might not know what to do or say.

Our family retreat leader assured him. She said, "Steve, please don't worry. We've got a whole day and a half of training lined up and we'll make you feel really at ease. Honestly, you'll do fine. In fact, I will personally make certain that you are assigned to a family that's really easy, a family whose child has a mild disability. Please come, Steve, you'll see."

Steve asked, "Are you sure? You promise you won't give me a hard assignment? You're going to give me a family I can handle?" Our retreat leader assured him. Steve went ahead, signed up on the family retreat page of our website, and on the week of the family retreat, he arrived right on time for orientation and training, which we always do a day before the retreat begins.

Steve did a pretty good job, but that did not help his nervousness. He was still worrying he'd be given some hard-to-handle kid with all kinds of strange disabilities. It is usually at the end of that training day when we give all the volunteers their assignments. We match the families with the volunteer skill level.

Steve sat there in the middle of the rest of the volunteers waiting, wondering who he would be assigned to. He sat there nervous, but he remembered our promise. We would give him an easy family. The leader began passing out the names. "Mary, you get the Johnson family. Robert, I'm going to assign you to the Jefferson family. Brian, you get the Monroe family. Selena, you get the Burnett family. And Steve, you get the Worst family."

Our family retreat leader gasped, and Steve jumped up and blurted out, "I knew it! You promised you wouldn't and now you tell me I've got the worst family!" At that point, the family retreat leader and all of us were laughing so hard. "No, no," she tried to explain, "It's the Worst family, like W-U-R-S-T, Worst." She hadn't even realized the irony of connecting the Worst family with poor Steve. Finally, he got the point.

He was assured that this mom and dad, Mr. and Mrs. Worst, had a child with a very mild disability. Maybe you would like to serve at one of our family retreats this summer. Maybe you see yourself as Steve. You might be a little fearful. Let me assure you, we'll make certain that you are perfectly matched to a disabled adult or child and their family who matches your skill and comfort level.

You might be assigned to the nursery, to help in the cafeteria, to help with setups, or to assist us with administration. You could even join the prayer team for family retreats. We always make certain that at every family retreat there is a great prayer team that's lifting up the needs of these moms and dads and children. We need all of the volunteers this summer we can get. Please consider serving the Lord Jesus by serving at a family retreat this season.

Guest (Female): Friend, I can speak from experience as both a family retreat volunteer and a mom whose disabled daughter has been served. Come join us at family retreat. I promise it will be a blessing. Whether you end up being the buddy for an adult who uses a wheelchair or helping us on the prayer team, God will use you to change someone's life, and he'll change yours in the process. I promise.