Jase And Family Retreat
Welcome to Joni and Friends, where Family Retreats are in full swing.
Hi, I’m Joni Eareckson Tada, and I love telling people how they can volunteer with us at Family Retreat. Here at the ministry, we really encourage our employees to sign up and serve. Like for example, Jase, who works in our human resources department.
When Jase started working with Joni and Friends, he absolutely loved it. And after a while, though, he started to feel a little restless. He would spend lunchtime with fellow employees, and he’d hear how much they enjoyed volunteering at our retreats for special needs families? Sitting there listening, it sounded good, but he just didn’t think he was cut out to help a kid with a disability and his family. He’d sit around the lunch table, listen to his co-workers and think, “Well, that sounds nice, but it’s just not for me.”
Over the months, his co–workers would keep asking, “Hey Jase, you want to sign up?” But he kept saying no. Until finally, God intervened. The Murrieta Hot Springs Family Retreat not far from our headquarters had an urgent need. We were caught short when a couple of male volunteers had suddenly withdrawn. And at that retreat, we really needed young men to serve – I mean, you know, pre–teen boys in wheelchairs don’t want to hang out with older girl volunteers, right?! So, back at the headquarters of Joni and Friends, all eyes were on Jase. “We really need you, guy!” Well, feeling the pressure of the Holy Spirit on his heart, Jase reluctantly said, “Oh, okay, I’ll do it.” And terrified, he packed his bag, climbed in his car, and arrived at our Murrieta Hot Springs Family Retreat. And right away, he was paired with a disabled kid named Alex – Alex and his family. And instantly, Alex made Jase his best buddy. And that week, those two did everything together. Played ball, did crafts, swam in the pool, ate together in the dining hall, worshiped side-by-side, sang, laughed and had a great time. And Jase was absolutely overwhelmed by the love this disabled kid Alex showed him. And he began to understand I Corinthians 12: 22 – that those who seem to be weaker are indispensable in the body of Christ. Maybe Jase did not know much about kids with disabilities before Family Retreat, but when he got back to our headquarters, he said to us, “You know, this is what I want to do for the rest of my career. I went to Family Retreat with zero special needs experience, and, guys, now I’m hooked. And I realize, you don’t need a Ph.D. in special education to love someone. And I may have gone to Family Retreat thinking I would bless somebody, but, man, knowing Alex, I received an even bigger blessing.” But then, Jase said something to his fellow employees that really, well, listening in, it made me cry. He said, “Friends, I want you to know, every report you submit around here, every desk job you do, all the computers, every meeting you participate in, it’s going to make sense when you go to Family Retreat. So, you guys, you gotta understand the real mission behind Joni and Friends. All you new employees, sign up!”
Well, I share Jase’s story because our mission is to see people, well, like Alex and his family, come to Christ. We want to see their burdens lifted and their hope restored through gospel love. So, this week, pray for special needs families, would you, at our Family Retreats going on right now in Tennessee, Ohio, New Mexico, Missouri, Pennsylvania. Hundreds of disabled kids and their families are gonna be attending, so ask God to melt hearts, and to rescue families like Alex’s. And next year? Why not join Jase and sign up and serve at a Joni and Friends Family Retreat.
© Joni and Friends
Hear From Jase on the Podcast
Listen as Jase shares about his initial fears of volunteering, and the life-changing experience he had during one of the hardest but best weeks of his life! Hear how a week of fun, community, and worship with the whole body of Christ literally felt like a slice of heaven.
