Thy Tender Care: What Caregiving and Disability Can Teach Us about the Kingdom of God

Discover God's kingdom in the sacred space of caregiving

In this intimate portrait of parenthood, a driven father discovers the life-transforming presence of God through his relationship with his son Edward, a young man with Down syndrome who is also nonverbal. Much like the parables Jesus told, their shared moments--whether quiet, humorous, frustrating, or gentle--become windows into a deeper reality where weakness becomes strength, difference brings life, and love speaks clearly even when there are no words.

Author John Van Sloten invites readers to see how God often chooses the ordinary to unveil the divine. In the same way creation "speaks for itself," routine experiences with Edward become God-stories--small epiphanies that form a larger vision of who God is and how God meets us. The assembled image offers fresh ways of seeing disability and divinity.

Whether you are a caregiver, a parent, or simply someone longing for a deeper understanding of God, Thy Tender Care will resonate with the beauty and ache of giving oneself for another. Through a father's tender story of his son's unfiltered presence, you may find your own assumptions about control, success, and identity gently undone. In the mysterious and all-inclusive kingdom of God, relationship and caregiving are not sacrifices but invitations into sacred space.Read less