Different Not Less

We talk through the meaning of “different, not less” and why disability never equals diminished value. We connect disability inclusion to the image of God, the body of Christ, and the practical work of making the gospel accessible to our neighbors. 

• the scale of disability in the United States and why many disabled people do not attend church 
• the disconnect between how disability-friendly churches feel to leaders versus families 
• what “different, not less” means and why the phrase matters 
• learning from Temple Grandin’s perspective while remembering that autism is a spectrum 
• moving beyond stereotypes about disability and misconceptions about missionary work 
• holding celebration and struggle together without shame or denial 
• grounding human value in God as Creator rather than ability or productivity 
• 1 Corinthians 12 and why those who seem weaker are indispensable 
• building compassion that supports people without treating them as burdens 
• why an accessible gospel is essential for belonging, growth, and service 

If you want to dive deeper on your own, you can check out the indispensable-people blog or my books on Amazon called The Indispensable Kid or Gospel Accessibility and the Indispensable People.

Transcript

Welcome And The Disability Gap

SPEAKER_00 0:02

Hey, hey, my name is Tracy Coral, and welcome to Indispensable People. I'm a pastor, a teacher, a missionary, a mom, a wife, and I believe that every person should have access to the gospel so that they can know Christ, grow in him, and serve him with the gifts that he has given. Over 65 million Americans have a disability. That's 15 to 20% of every community. And over 85% of those individuals do not attend church. 90% of pastors believe that they are a disability-friendly church, but only 20% of parents and families agree. Let's dive deep into hard topics, big questions, perceptions, stereotypes, and so much more. Hey,

Different Not Less Defined

SPEAKER_00 0:54

hey, and welcome to this episode of Indispensable People. I want to talk to you about the topic of different and not less. And no, that is not my original thought that has been shared and come up with. Now, obviously, her diagnosis is not the same as every other person. And we know that autism is a spectrum, and many people experience it in different ways. But she has a perspective that has opened up a lot of people's understanding and given a real look into autism from her perspective.

Misconceptions About Missionary Work

SPEAKER_00 2:25

And so, you know, a lot of times as a missionary talking to people at churches about disability, we've had it, you know, an encounter, more than one encounter, where, you know, just because we're missionaries, the assumption is, first of all, we're world missionaries, not US missionaries, which is what we are. And that we, you know, encounter all these different cultures and, you know, have experiences. We're in the jungle going on safari, you know, all these kinds of crazy things that just isn't our experience. It might be an experience for many other missionaries, but it isn't for us. We live in the United States, we serve people primarily in the United States. And so our experience is with your next door neighbor. And we, I have spoken about this kind of shift in in ways of looking at people with disabilities from, you know, years and years and years ago, of the hidden and the, you know, shameful and put behind and all the other kind of stuff to today's perspective of celebrating disabilities. And I think that the shift has been so great that we have taken the focus onto celebrating

Value, Struggle, And God’s Design

SPEAKER_00 3:50

disabilities, which to some extent makes people who experience the struggles that go with them that there's something wrong with them. But we can celebrate the creation and the fearfully and wonderfully made person that God has placed in this world for his glory and his purposes. But also we can identify and recognize that there are struggles that go along with that. You know, if you look at Paul and he talks about the thorn in his side, the struggles that he had, and yet he was one of the most prolific and amazing the theologians that existed, regardless of, you know, the things that he went through. And so the whole different, not less perspective is just because I think differently, just because my brain works differently, doesn't mean I'm less than. And I am definitely a believer in the fact that no person should be looked at as less than, that every person carries value, and that value doesn't come because of what we can do and who we are. It becomes, it exists because of our creator and who God is. And so no one is less than. Yes, we are all different. We have different experiences. Some of those differences cause struggles in my life and in the lives of people with disabilities. And some of those differences are what makes you be able to be uniquely used in the body of Christ as well. And so you don't have different with only good, right? Different can also be struggles as well. And we are different for a multitude of reasons, but we can focus on the fact that we were a handcrafted design, a purposeful creation known by God, and that we each have our individual value, and that we are made in the image of God. And it applies to every single person because he is the creator of each and every one of them. And like I said, that phrase different, not less, it's attributed to Dr. Temple Grandin. And again, she was a renowned scientist and autism advocate, and she used her own life and experience to explain her perspective on autism. And different kind of looks at the acknowledgement that a person who has a disability, their brain, their body, or their cognitive process functions outside of what society considers the norm. It recognizes unique profiles where a person might have an extraordinary ability in one area and significant struggles in another. Not less denies that disability is equal to a reduced human value. And I think we could all agree with that. But it challenges the idea that a different way of functioning is broken or inferior. But we know that our value doesn't come from what we can do, it comes from God, and scripture tells us that. And 1 Corinthians 12 says that even those that we that seem weaker are actually indispensable. Building compassion and understanding will guide us and direct us as we encounter people with all kinds of disabilities, not undermining their struggles and understanding the things that they walk through and live with, and also not looking at those things as a burden to us and to society. But, you know, there are scriptures about lifting one another up and encouraging each other on and looking and taking care of one another. Those are opportunities that we have being the body of Christ. And so we want to take those steps into being that for others, but also understanding that they are not less than us. They are not less than someone who would be considered normal by society's standards, but that they have value and purposes

Compassion And The Accessible Gospel

SPEAKER_00 8:35

just as we do. And they might be different than ours, right? Because if I looked inside my own family, I have a son who is a diesel mechanic. That's definitely not something I can do. I have another son who is really great with computers. That is definitely not something that I'm great about. We're not the same. And that's intentional. God creates us differently so that we can fulfill his purposes within his plan. And so, how do we build this understanding within the people that we get to meet, our next door neighbors, those who are surrounding us in our schools and in our jobs and places like that? Is we help them to understand who God is, and we can only do that with an accessible gospel. So, yes, we're different. That doesn't mean you're less than. It means that God has plans and purposes for you. And at the same time, we don't negate the struggles that each person has to live through to fulfill his purposes. But we have to have an accessible gospel to do that. We have to make sure that Christ can be known. Um, and we can do that through our churches, through our relationships, through the people that we meet and the places that we go. An accessible gospel says to someone, you're not less than. But you have a God who created you, has plans and purposes for your life. I can't claim to have all the answers. I can't claim to know all the things, but here's what we are gonna do. We're gonna keep this conversation going. We're gonna make the accessible gospel available to individuals with disabilities in our churches and in our communities so that every person has the opportunity to know Christ, to grow in him, and to serve him.

Keep The Conversation Going

SPEAKER_00 10:30

If you want to dive deeper on your own, you can check out the indispensable people blog or my books on Amazon called The Indispensable Kid or Gospel Accessibility and the Indispensable People.