Down Syndrome

A child with Down Syndrome is a special blessing from God!

They are born with something extra.  That extra chromosome makes them extra... cute, lovable, huggable, loving, sweet, innocent, saintly (and sometimes very stubborn, which many a saint was stubborn!), quiet and full of sweetness.

She's my child that does not like all the noise and commotion.  She's sensitive to over-stimuli.  She loves Jesus!

I have a picture of The Holy Face of Jesus.  A while back Jackie started carrying this picture around with her.  She started talking to it.  She started nodded her head as if listening.  It seemed she was having a real conversation with it.  She kissed Jesus continually.  Shortly after that, I told our parish priest about it and we decided she was ready to receive Holy Communion.  That following Thursday was Thanksgiving and the day she received her First Holy Communion.

Something that my pastor has said to me about Jackie that I will never forget... "You know, she is not capable of sinning."  In other words we have a saint walking amongst us!

Not that Jackie is perfect and never does anything wrong, but she is not capable mentally to ever really be sinful.  She is innocent in the eyes of God.  What a blessing that is!

You see, right from the start I realized that these children are not the one's with a handicap... we are.  We are the ones truly handicapped.  We are the ones that are encased in our own sins and continually need forgiveness from our Father.  We are the one's lacking.  Yes, those of us that the world supposedly considers "normal".  We "normal" ones are the ones in trouble.  We lack, while people with disabilities have many extras.  Their biggest "extra" is they are extra close to God.  How could they not be?  They are His innocent ones.

Around 92 percent of children with Down Syndrome are aborted.  What does this say about our world?  What does this say about the mentality of our society?

This world is steeped in sin.  And in a sinful world, the innocent suffer the most.  The "handicapped", the unwanted babies, the unwanted sick, the burdensome elderly, the littlest amongst us.  What the worldly considers worthless and to be thrown away.  These so-called "throw aways"  are God's most precious blessings.  They are the true and most treasured gifts He gives us.

These "handicapped" ones are our chance.  They are our chance to come closer to God.  They are our opportunity to show kindness and compassion in a rude and selfish world.  They are the ones we can nurture, care for, love.  Taking care of someone is not always easy, but it gives us the opportunity to "offer it up" for our own flaws and failings.  This is where we can become more like Jesus.

My daughter Nicole and I had a conversation yesterday about Jackie.  Nicole said, "I think God gave you Jackie so you always have someone with you to care for and nurture.  You will never be alone. You will always have Jackie right with you."  I agree. But, in all of our busyness with this life, we need to always spend time with God.  By putting Him first, everything else will fall into place.  I need to keep reminding myself of that amongst all the duties of this life.  We need to sit at our Savior's feet.  Be with Him.  Never neglect Him!

This is just one of the many reasons God is calling me, calling us to...

"Come Out of Her."  

If we are "wordly" we are continually in a sand trap.  We sink more and more every moment.

 The only way out is Jesus.  

He holds out His Hand.  

Grab it!

Revelation 18:4 "Then I heard another voice from heaven say, Come out of her, My people, so you will not share in her sins, so that you will not receive any of her plagues."