Who Are You? A Biblical Answer

by jphilo | May 12, 2020 | Different Dream, Encouragement

Who Are You? A Biblical Answer

Who are you? That’s a question we ask about our children, but perhaps more often about those with disabilities and special needs. Guest blogger Mark Arnold gives a hope-filled, biblical answer.

How do we view children or young people with additional needs? Do we think about them as problems to solve? How do we perceive how God can use them to evangelize? Are they just children who are autistic, dyslexic, blind, deaf, physically disabled, or non-verbal?

They may be many of these thing, but are they just what people see them to be? Or are they so much more than they seem? God sees them as much more. He speaks through them to share the gospel with the world? Here are words from God about how he answers the question, “Who are you?”

You are made in the image of God. So God created human beings in his own likeness. He created them to be like himself. Genesis 1:27a

You are amazingly and wonderfully made. How you made me is amazing and wonderful. I praise you for that. What you have done is wonderful. I know that very well. Psalm 139:14

You are eternally loved by God. I have loved you with a love that lasts forever. I have kept on loving you with a kindness that never fails. Jeremiah 31:3

You are God’s children. Some people did accept him and did believe in his name. He gave them the right to become children of God. John 1:12

You are Jesus’ friend: I am the vine. You are the branches. If you remain joined to me, and I to you, you will bear a lot of fruit. John 15:5a

You are full of joy. And that is not all. We are full of joy in God because of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 5:11a

You are at peace with God. Those who belong to Christ Jesus are no longer under God’s judgment. Romans 8:1

You are on God’s side. What should we say then? Since God is on our side, who can be against us? Romans 8:31

You are inseparable from the love of Jesus. Who can separate us from Christ’s love?… No! In all these things we are more than winners! We owe it all to Christ, who has loved us. Romans 8:35…37

You are God’s temple. Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple? Don’t you know that God’s Spirit lives among you?” 1 Corinthians 3:16

You are one with Jesus in spirit. Whoever is joined to the Lord becomes one with him in spirit. 1 Corinthians 6:17

You are part of the body of Christ. There is one body, but it has many parts. But all its many parts make up one body. It is the same with Christ. We were all baptized by one Holy Spirit. And so we are formed into one body. 1 Corinthians 12:12-13a

You are the sweet fragrance of Christ. God considers us to be the pleasing smell that Christ is spreading. 2 Corinthians 2:15

You can do anything through Christ’s strength. I can do all this by the power of Christ. He gives me strength. Philippians 4:13

You are completely forgiven through Jesus, Because of what the Son has done, we have been set free. Because of him, all our sins have been forgiven. Colossians 1:14

You are complete. Because you belong to Christ, you have been made complete. Colossians 2:10a

You are a child of light. All of you are children of the light. 1 Thessalonians 5:5

You are Jesus’ brothers and sisters: Jesus is not ashamed to call them his brothers and sisters. Hebrews 2:11

You are holy and chosen: “Holy brothers and sisters, God chose you to be his people. Hebrews 3:1

You are children of God, and Jesus protects them: “We know that those who are children of God do not keep on sinning. The Son of God keeps them safe. The evil one can’t harm them. 1 John 5:18

Our children are more than what people may see. They are loved more than they, or we, can imagine. They are valued more than all the gold and jewels on Earth. Let’s remember these verses when we meet these wonderful people and ask the question, “Who are you?”

All Bible verses were taken from the Biblica NIrV Accessible Edition, with permission.

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Mark Arnold is the Additional Needs Ministry Director at Urban Saints, a leading national Christian children’s and youth organization. He is co-founder of the Additional Needs Alliance, a national and international advocate for children and young people with additional needs or disabilities. Mark is a Churches for All and Living Fully Network partner, a member of the Council for Disabled Children and the European Disability Network. He writes an additional needs column for Premier Youth and Children’s Work (YCW) magazine and blogs at The Additional Needs Blogfather. He is father to James, who has autism spectrum condition, associated learning disability, and epilepsy. To find out more about how Mark’s work can help you, contact him at: marnold@urbansaints.org or @Mark_J_Arnold.

Author Jolene Philo

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Is There Any Hope for our Children with Disabilities?

Is there any hope? Now there’s a question every parent caring for a child with disabilities and special needs ponders. Guest blogger Kimberly Drew is back to point readers to the source of her hope as she and her husband raise two daughters with disabilities.

I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father,
may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.
I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you,
the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe.
Ephesians 1:17-19a (NIV)

I sat in a waiting room of a children’s hospital dedicated to those with special needs. It’s a small hospital, and the waiting room was packed. My daughter Abbey was around 10 at the time, and we were there for a routine appointment. I was irritated about the wait when an ambulance transfer showed up with a little boy confined to a hospital bed. There were feeding tubes, trach tubes, and all kinds of other medical leads coming out of this little guy. His mom walked alongside the paramedics and stayed with her son while he got checked in. She rubbed his forehead and kissed his chee. A nurse suctioned his trach. I looked around the room at all the children with disabilities and their parents and felt hopeless. What are we all doing here? This life is too hard, it’s too painful! What’s the point of it all!?

Is there any hope?

I know I’m not the only parent who has felt that way because I have talked to so many of you who have wrestled with those very thoughts. It’s really important for us to recognize that this pursuit of truth leads to the answers that quiet our soul’s questions. Time in God’s Word is what strengthens our ability to process our unique and sometimes painful experiences. If we are in Christ Jesus, we have a living hope that is not only meant to be known, but to be experienced. Paul prays for the Ephesians to have the eyes of their hearts enlightened so that they may know (emphasis mine) the hope to which Christ calls us, the riches of our inheritance in Him, and the incomparable power of Christ in our lives.

Psalm 119:114 says this about the Lord: You are my refuge and my shield; I have put my hope in your word.

Sometimes people look at our life and say that it’s really hard. I won’t argue that having two disabled children is sometimes heartbreaking. But is there any hope? The answer is yes! We still have joy and hope. People ask my husband Ryan and me how we handle it the way we do. There’s only one word: Jesus. The work of his Holy Spirit, and the truth of God’s word has changed us from the inside out.

Jeremiah 29:12-13 says Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. If you are feeling hopeless today, I encourage you to seek God’s Word. Christ is a refuge and shield. This hope, this inheritance, this power of Christ is meant to be known and experienced!

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Kimberly grew up and went to college in the small town of Upland, IN. She graduated from Taylor University with a degree in Elementary Education in 2002. While at TU, she married her college sweetheart and so began their adventure! Ryan and Kimberly have three amazing kids on earth (Abigail, Jayden, and Cooper), and a baby boy waiting for them in heaven. Their daughter Abigail (Abbey) has multiple disabilities including cerebral palsy, a seizure disorder, hearing loss, microcephaly, and oral dysphagia. She is the inspiration behind Kimberly’s desire to write. In addition to being a stay at home mom, Kimberly has been serving alongside her husband in full time youth ministry for almost fourteen years. She enjoys working with the senior high girls, scrapbooking, reading, and music. You can visit Kimberly at her website, Promises and Perspective.