Lord, I Give You My Heart - Pt. II

Educators, parents, and loved ones who have a child with special needs in their care often wonder about that child’s understanding and communication. How much of what the child experiences, reads, or hears can that child understand? How much of what the child thinks and feels can the child communicate? The answers to these questions are unique to each situation. Even among children with identical diagnoses, differing levels of understanding and communication are common.

How Kevin might learn and how he might express what he learned was important to the Heaths. However, what was more important to them was if he would be able to understand and respond to the gospel.

What would Kevin be able to understand about the Bible?
What would he be able to experience in worship and in his knowledge of God?
Would he be able to understand the gospel?
Would he be able to express a desire to follow Jesus?
Would Kevin be “saved” in a similar manner to their other children, Jason and Bethany?

They didn’t know.

As with most children, a part of Kevin’s discipleship and spiritual growth started at home by mimicking what he saw from his father, Mike.

Mike would typically get up, have his morning coffee, and have a devotional time with his Bible. When Kevin got up early, he would get a cup of chocolate milk, grab his beloved Bible, and sit reading near Mike. The Heaths knew that Kevin was mimicking Mike’s behavior just like any child would, but deep in their hearts, they wondered if more was going on. They prayed that Kevin would know, understand, and accept the gospel. They also prayed that when he did, God would allow them to know about it.

“Deep in their hearts, they wondered if more was going on.”

As Kevin grew, the family tried different strategies for his biblical and spiritual education.  The one that seemed to work the best for Kevin involved the Heath’s small group. One or two members of the group at a time would forgo the group time to spend time with Kevin in a one-on-one Bible class. 

As the group worked with Kevin, the lessons began to fall into a simple pattern. They would read a section of the Bible, play a game, perhaps sing a worship song, and then Kevin would write or draw in his journal. Kevin liked repetition and patterns and for things to be very similar, so it worked great for him. 

Many members of the class spent time with Kevin. One thing that became immediately apparent to everyone who worked with him was that Kevin loved the Bible. Second to his Bible, Kevin’s journal was very important to him in his worship and discipleship.

“Kevin treats his Bible like a treasure.”

Robin Hutchins is a good friend to the Heaths and someone who spent a lot of time teaching Kevin the Bible. Like others, Robin noticed that Kevin had a reverence for his Bible and a love for worship. “Kevin has a love for God's word and for worship like I have never seen before,” Robin says. She could see what a special place the Bible held in Kevin's life by the gentle way Kevin turned the pages, with careful attention and reverence.

Robin had training in speech pathology and had worked with many Down Syndrome children prior to meeting Kevin. It became clear to Robin over time that Kevin understood a lot more than he could express. She and the Heaths began to see a few signs that Kevin might be ready to answer the call of the gospel.

One October weekend, Laurie and Kevin were out of town pet-sitting for her daughter. They attended a local church where they were staying. During the service, Kevin picked up one of the hymnals and searched through it. He found a hymn titled “I Have Decided to Follow Jesus.” He pointed to it with enthusiasm, making sure his mom could read the title. Laurie thought, “Well, that’s pretty cool.” Mike was out of town so later, when Laurie told him, they were both pretty excited, however, they were not sure exactly what it meant. Did Kevin really choose to follow Christ?

About a month later, Mike was again out of town and Laurie was sitting in a small group meeting while Kevin was in a nearby room studying the Bible with Robin. As David Parrish got up to teach, Laurie got a text from Robin. It was a picture of Kevin’s journal where he had written, “Lord, I give you my heart.” 

The text also asked if Laurie and Mike had talked about this with Kevin. Laurie jumped up from her seat and rushed over to where Robin was working with Kevin. The two decided to go over the gospel with Kevin. Nervously, they went through it together with him. Robin said, “That was probably the worst gospel presentation I’ve ever given. I was so overwhelmed.” That morning, Kevin prayed to accept Jesus as his savior. 

With emotions running high, Laurie walked back into the small group class and right up to David at the podium. She apologized for interrupting but said she needed to make an announcement. David stepped aside and Laurie announced to the class what had happened. The entire class had a great morning of celebration! They had been praying for this moment for many years. Not only had Kevin understood and responded to the gospel, but God had allowed them to know about it and celebrate with him!

Kevin was able to be baptized on the last Sunday in December 2020 while his brother, Jason, was in town for Christmas. It was a joyous moment for many in the church considering all the people who had been impacted in one way or another by Kevin. 

One common factor in Kevin’s life is that no one limited him or labeled him. Mike commented that if anyone had ever said about Kevin or to Kevin, “he can’t” about anything, then he probably never would have. 

For many people, there is a hesitancy, a worry, about working with people who have special needs. Perhaps we fear saying the wrong thing or we are just uncomfortable. However, anyone who was able to move past his or her discomforts and insecurities to work with Kevin came to find that Kevin gave so much more than he or she was able to give Kevin. For so many people who’ve met or worked with him, Kevin has been a gift. 

Robin, speaking for many who spent time working with Kevin says, “It's not like, ‘Oh, we've done this big sacrifice.’ No, I don't even see it that way... I can't even describe it as a service to the church. It's just been a joyful part of our journey.”

As for Kevin’s journey of faith, it continues. Like any of us, he is exploring and growing. Recently, Kevin added a new prayer discipline to his life. He uses a cube with prayers on it to pray before meals. He has grown in his study of the Bible, often following and completing lessons on his own. These spiritual disciplines are part of Kevin’s next steps of faith and many of those around him marvel at his devotion to worship.

In telling this story, I’ve been referring to Kevin’s special needs. This is simply the truth. Kevin’s abilities in some areas that our culture considers important may be limited. He may never graduate college, live on his own, or make a ton of money (but we won’t say “he can’t!”). However, for a moment I want to focus on his abilities that are outstanding. Kevin is advanced in areas and disciplines that are highly valued in God’s kingdom. Kevin worships and loves God with incredible zeal. He prays, studies his Bible, and treats his Bible as a treasure and a privilege. He unconditionally loves others and treats them with kindness. These are attributes that even the most mature of Christians can struggle with.

A large number of people worked together to help Kevin learn about the gospel. But Kevin also taught them. Kevin taught all of them about gospel values such as kindness, worship, love, and simplicity. Just as a large number of people were a part of helping Kevin learn, Kevin has the ability to teach us about simply loving and following Jesus as Lord. His ability to do that is off the charts.