In a previous post, I wrote about a devotional that I would need to share with our homeschool co-op … you can read about it here -> To Speak or Not To Speak …

Well, today was the first day of co-op and the day for me to share a devotional and let me tell you, I was terribly anxious.  I actually was having an anxiety attack during the devotional and was desperately trying to talk myself down on the inside while I was maintaining my talk to the group on the outside.  Now, THAT is tricky.  Truthfully, I desperately did not want to speak, but the Lord  convicted me that my focus needed to be on being a living example of His love to the children and teens before me and not on my own renewed fear of public speaking.  So I am going to share here what I spoke to the students in our co-op this morning … including the parts I cut out at the last second due to time.  This is written more as I speak, not as I typically write.

Welcome to the new school year!

As you know, every co-op morning, we gather for a short devotional which serves not only to pull us all together before we begin the day’s work, but it also provides an opportunity to quiet our hearts and focus our attention on what is most important … our relationship with Jesus Christ.

Typically, the devotionals are offered by the mothers but this semester, we are doing things a bit differently. The seniors, who are taking speech class, will be taking turns sharing with us. That will begin the next time we meet but for today, you are stuck with me.

I was pretty anxious about being the first one to share and in my fear, I wanted to offer something simple and even a bit generic, but instead I believe the Lord has led me to share a story that is very special to me. I am sharing it as simply as I can due to time constraints so there will be some missing details.

But I hope you will listen carefully because there are two very important truths that I hope you will tuck away to think about later.

Those of you familiar with my family will remember that I have a third child who does not attend this co-op. For those who are new, my oldest son Tyler is 17 years old and he attends a special school in Hershey because he is profoundly impacted by autism.

Technically, Tyler would also be a senior this school year but his life and needs are very different from all of yours. Even though this is his senior year, he will continue in a modified school setting until he is 21.

What I am sharing today is part of his story and since the seniors will be sharing throughout the rest of the semester, it seems appropriate for me to share this in Tyler’s place with all of you today.

When Ty was diagnosed at a very young age with autism, he could not speak. He had no words at all … no way to communicate. He could not understand sign language nor did using pictures encourage him to communicate. When he was four years old, he was seen by a specialist at Hershey Med Center who told me that if he was not speaking by the age of 5 … he would never speak. Not ever.

Well, he still wasn’t speaking at the age of five and I was heartbroken. Among all my many concerns for his safety and his future, my greatest fear was for his eternity. Would Tyler ever understand his need of a Savior? Would he ever be in a position to repent of sin and invite Jesus into his heart? What would that even look like for a child with his level of disability? Would I ever know? I laid awake many nights praying and crying over him and seeking God on his behalf. I rejoiced greatly when my other children asked Jesus into their hearts a number of years ago, but Ty and his need of salvation continued to weigh heavily on me.

Ty began receiving services in the home around the age of two and when he was three years old, he began to attend a specialized autism preschool in Carlisle. Once he turned 5, he started kindergarten at a new autism school also located in Carlisle. In the middle of second grade I transferred into a different autism school in Harrisburg that, at the time, seemed better suited to meet his many needs. He remained there until just a few years ago when the Lord did an incredible work and he was transferred to the school he is in now, which is located in Hershey. Tyler travels back and forth every day and, in addition to academics, his days are also filled with speech and occupational therapies, learning job skills, behavioral management, learning activities of daily living, going on community outings, and working alongside peers. Everything is geared to helping him to be as successful and independent as he can possibly in his life.

I’ve never stopped taking him to church even though we always ended up outside the service. I’ve never stopped praying with and for him. But Ty never seemed to understand and since he couldn’t talk, there was no way to know what he was absorbing … but our Pastor encouraged me to speak God’s truth into Ty because he was sure Ty understood more than most realized. He told me to talk to him about sin and teach him about his need of a Savior. No, I didn’t know what Ty could understand but I knew God could open his heart and cause his mind to understand. It was my job to pray and to teach … it was God’s job to do the work.

So that’s what I did … over and over and over.

 

This past spring, I made up a little booklet of Bible verses for Ty. He was facing a big transition at his school and I wanted to teach him a few specific verses that could help him deal with the stress and fear he was experiencing. I typed out verses and I laminated them and before he left for school in the morning, I would read one or two to him. I would sit beside him holding the booklet and then slowly read over the verse, carefully pointing to each word as I read. I hoped and prayed that using just those few verses repeatedly would cause the words of God to sink deeply into Ty’s heart and take root.

 

One day, we had a massive thunderstorm at our house. It was a really bad one and our power went out and we lost our electricity. Now for most of us, that isn’t too big of a deal because we understand what happened and that the power would come back on eventually … in fact, most of us would consider it an adventure, right?

Not so with Ty. When our power goes out, it is traumatic for him and to say he gets upset, is an understatement.

Well, hours passed and our power didn’t come back on so Ty and I ended up sitting out on our front porch on the swing. As I sat there,I prayed and pondered what about what I should say or do … I had a sense that God was up to something but I certainly did not know what. Just then, a song popped into my head so I asked Ty if I could sing … Ty is a typical teenage guy in some ways and while he used to love it when I sang to him, he tends to hate it now. But this time, he used one word and said, ‘Sing.’

So, I softly sang these words that were so strongly on my heart to him and to my God …

There is power, in the name of Jesus.

There is power, in the name of Jesus.

There is power, in the name of Jesus.

To break every chain,

Break every chain,

Break every chain.

 

Because of the lack of time, I am going to skip some of this part of the story to tell you that God did a work in Ty that night. All of the years of praying, reading the Bible to Ty, taking him to church, and teaching him about Jesus led to this night. God did something for Ty that the specialist at Hershey said he would never be able to do … Jesus broke a chain and Tyler was able to verbally ask Jesus into his heart.

A few minutes later, we walked into the house and Ty quietly repeated one word, ‘Heart’ … and almost immediately after that … our electricity came back on and our power was restored.

Children and teens, this is the first and most important truth that I think Ty would like you to understand … something even more important than anything you might learn this coming year in your schooling. The Bible tells us in John 14:6, that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father, but by Him. Coming to a place that you understand your need of a savior and asking Jesus into your heart is the most important lesson you can learn. It is my hope that most of you have already taken this step and if not, then I pray the Lord will draw you to Himself and open your means of understanding just as He did for Ty.

But there is one thing more for those of us who have already asked Jesus into our hearts. Remember the booklet of verses I typed up for Ty earlier this year? Well, one of the verses was Philippians 4:13 … in my Bible this reads, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”

Now for Ty, I have always used the name Jesus, so in his book of verses, I typed ‘I can do all things through Jesus who strengthens me.’

This particular verse was the one I read most often with him … it seemed to be connecting with him in some way so almost every morning before school, I would get this little book out, point to each word in this verse, and say it slowly to him … hoping that one day, he would start saying some of it himself.

Well … one morning a couple of weeks after he asked Jesus into his heart, Ty woke up on the wrong side of the bed. Do you know what I mean? He was grumpy and he was grumbling and growling around like an old bear. The transition process he was going through at school was very difficult and he clearly did not want to go that day. He was just having a very rough time of it. It was almost time for his van to come so I prayed with him and then grabbed his verses … I turned to Philippians 4:13 and very slowly began reading it to him pointing to each word and pausing to see if he would repeat any of the words.

“I ,,, (pause) … can do … (pause) … all … (pause) … things … (pause) and suddenly before I could say another word, Ty burst out ‘With Jesus!’ as a huge smile transformed his face.

Oh my goodness you guys … the truth of this bible verse hit Ty in that moment and his entire demeanor completely changed. I read through the verse again with him and by the time I was done, his eyes were shining and he was laughing with joy, which continued as he climbed into his school van and throughout his entire day at school.

 

In the months since, Ty has learned to say that entire verse and while he doesn’t always smile and laugh, it often seems to give him strength and courage in the many difficulties he faces.

So, the second lesson I think Ty would want you to know is this … Having Jesus in our heart is our greatest source of joy and strength as we live out our Christian journey. Have you yet found this to be true in your own life? I hope you learn this lesson and carry it with you for the rest of your life.

Young people … may the very name of Jesus bring such transforming joy to your heart that you are forever changed. As you face the challenges of this school year, I hope you will remember Tyler and his story and I hope you will remind yourself that you too can do all things through Jesus who gives you strength.

 

 

Philippians 4:13 “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”