Conducting regional P.U.R.E. Celebrations and seminars  

 These "celebrations" are aimed at "regular" Christians and particularly pastors. Unlike conferences or workshops with disabilities or special needs somewhere in their title and focused on people already involved in the disability world, our focus is you. We're certainly not saying special ed teachers and parents are not invited (of course they are welcome), but we are focusing on average people who are unaware of the needs and blessings of the P.U.R.E. around us! Our goals in these conferences are to:

 Inspire, inform, Encourage, and Excite

"regular" people about P.U.R.E. ministry. I will close each conference with something tangible and doable that every church can take away and implement rather quickly: how to offer respite care in their church for both or either P.U.R.E. children and their siblings and/or adults.  We will be using professional musicians and will have much praise and worship time in the conferences. We will heavily promote these celebrations in national publications and local media (radio and TV). We will then follow-up after the regional conferences with in-church seminars for churches or groups of churches desiring more hands-on training.

Developing ministry partnerships with other Christian based ministries and evangelical denominations

Zachariah's Way is currently in talks concerning partnering with a number of like minded organizations, secular and Christian"disability" oriented organizations, and Christian denominations. We are focusing on organizations and denominations who share our vision of now we can motivate the Body of Christ - the church - to better minister to P.U.R.E. people and their families and to lovingly welcome them into their fellowships.

Approach, encourage, and help facilitate selected seminaries to develop and offer educational courses on P.U.R.E. Ministry issues

Zachariah's Way has and is approaching a number of seminaries about various ways in which P.U.R.E. Ministry issues can be included in the core curriculum of ministerial candidates as well as other Christian education, missions, music ministry, etc. students. We beleive that if pastors and other church and missions staff have a better understanding and appreciation of the needs and blessings of P.U.R.E. people and their families, then they are much better informed, prepared, and motivated to build ministries which will readily include, accomodate, and welcome P.U.R.E. people.

Introducing creative and "outside the Sunday school class on Sunday morning box" ministry ideas to churches

If one asks the typical church member to describe their church's current special needs ministry, we will more than likely hear about a Sunday school room located in the bowels of the church building where crippled people go. Further, the average persons' perception of special needs ministry (whether in their church or not) is almost always based on some place or activity occurring on Sunday mornings. The P.U.R.E. Ministry Project will attempt to challenge the church to think outside the box in creative ways. Integral to this goal is the concept of inclusion of pure people in normal church worship, fellowship, and ministry. Though inclusion and assimilation is the objective, concern for the individual and what is best for each person must override any broader aim.

Initiating and growing a national network of local church-based respite care programs acorss the U.S.

Arguably the greatest need for P.U.R.E. parents is respite care - a break from the daily routine. So why aren't more churches offering this wonderful ministry? The P.U.R.E. Ministry Project's main focus for churches either thinking about or in the formative stages of beginning a special needs ministry is respite care. We have discovered in many, many churches the advantages of offering in-church respite as the initial special needs ministry program.

• Volunteers can be more easily recruited for non-teaching activities such as respite care.

• Volunteers can be more easily recruited in groups Sunday School classes, home fellowships, choir,  etc .

• The volunteers gain wonderful exposure to the world of special needs.

• The volunteers and families with disabilities interact and establish friendships.

• Respite care can be an excellent training ground for all disabilities ministries.

• Providing respite care involves lessening the pressure of having to secure volunteers weekly - normally, respite care is offered periodically, not every Sunday.

• Respite care is an unbelievable evangelistic outreach for the church.