A.B.L.E. FAQs

A.B.L.E. Special Needs Service Frequently Asked Questions

1. Who can come to the A.B.L.E. Special Needs Family Worship Service?
Everyone is welcome, whether or not you have a family member living with differences.

2. Will there be a nursery or children’s church?
The A.B.L.E. Service will not have any childcare. Your entire family will be able to worship together, no matter how old they are!

3. Can I drop my children off at the A.B.L.E. Service and go do something else for a period of time?
Since we do not have childcare, parents may not simply drop off children. The A.B.L.E. Service is for the entire family to worship together.

4. My child makes a lot of noise, or sometimes my child wants to get up and walk around. Is that a problem?
We want EVERYONE to be as comfortable as possible. If someone in your family needs to walk around or make noise, that is absolutely FINE! If they wish to join us at the platform, no problem. If they want to dance, we want that, too! It is perfectly acceptable in the A.B.L.E. Service. We can all praise the Lord together, in our own unique way.

5. What if my child becomes overwhelmed and needs to get away?
We will have a “quiet room” available for anyone who wishes to calm down in a different space. This area will have fidget toys and manipulatives designed to help a person reset, if they feel the need to do so, and they can stay as long as they like and come back to the main area when they are comfortable. We will point this area out at the beginning of the service, and people can come and go as they like.

6. How long will the service be? My child cannot sit for a very long time.
The entire service will last no more than 45 minutes, and it will be broken into 4-5 minutes blocks. Don’t forget, though, there is no need for anyone to have to sit still or stay quiet in the A.B.L.E. Service! We want you to feel at home!

7. Do you provide respite care events or a Sunday morning buddy ministry?
Since the A.B.L.E. Ministry is just beginning, we do not provide respite events or a buddy ministry at this time. It is our hope to be able to make this happen in the future.

8. My child loves music. What if they try to come up and help out with the singers on the platform?
We hope they will! We want individuals to be a part of everything we do! We will have small instruments available up at the front, so that people can come up and join in!

9. Someone in my family has mobility issues. Is your building accessible?
Our building is completely accessible! We have no steps at all, so it is easy to get in and out.

10. Will we know what is going to happen in each service beforehand?
Absolutely! Each week we will provide a social story that outlines what is going to happen in advance. You can sign up to receive the social story via email, and we will also put it out each week on social media. In addition, we will use a storyboard in the service and literally check off each service item as we go. We will do everything we can to make the service as predictable as possible, in order to make everyone as comfortable as we can.