Covenant News

Youthworkers Connection Welcomes the Arnesons

GOLDEN, CO (January 31, 2000) - A sledding accident thirteen months ago paralyzed Jason Arneson and kept him from attending the 1999 Youthworkers Connection, but the 25-year-old youth pastor vowed he would be present for the 2000 event.

Arneson and his wife Laura were warmly welcomed by attendees Friday as they arrived in Chicago as part of Arvada Covenant Church's youth staff contingent. The couple's presence is an answer to prayer for many who responded to the needs of the former youth pastor of Deergrove Covenant Church in Palatine, Illinois.

The convention has arranged to cover the Arneson family's registration with proceeds from a trust fund set up for the Arnesons helping to defer travel and hotel expenses. He serves part-time as sports and recreation ministry director at Arvada Covenant Church, where he is a member.

"The trust fund has been extremely helpful and to those who've given to it - I can't express how much it's meant to us," Arneson said. "It's paid hospital bills, helped us buy the van and enabled us to put a down payment on a house. We've felt an overwhelming support from Arvada, Deergrove and First Covenant Church in Omaha, Laura's home church," Arneson added. Support has come from many churches and individuals throughout the country, "and we've been extremely blessed by the encouragement during a very rough time," he said.

On December 30, 1998, Arneson was serving at Deergrove Covenant and taking classes at North Park Theological Seminary. While visiting his in-laws in Nebraska, he suffered spinal cord injuries from a sledding accident, which have kept him immobile from the chest down. Arneson was rehabilitating at Craig Hospital in Inglewood, Colorado, when he received a conference call from individuals attending one of the Youthworkers Connection sessions. He promised then that he would attend this year - and keeping that promise has been a key motivator for him as he re-adjusts to life.

"It's definitely been up and down - it's been a hard road," Arneson said. "Physically, there's nothing from the chest down, feeling and motor. But, we're thankful for God's provision and we're beginning to have hope in the future. We've moved to a deeper understanding of God and how He works."

Arneson has a specially equipped van with hand controls that allows him to travel. He admits, "I've gotten a lot stronger with my upper body, but I have to plan a lot more carefully what I need to do, because too many trips can be physically exhausting." He uses a hand cycle and swims for recreation. He recently skied at a local resort as part of an adaptive ski program.

At the church, Arneson helps run the schedule at the church's full-size gym and his hope is to run a youth sports camp with a spiritual emphasis this summer. He also volunteers as a high school youth group counselor, along with Laura, who is the church youth secretary. Jason and Laura have been married five years and have two boys, Christian, age three, and Caleb, two. Laura admits that the daily routine can be difficult, but has been thankful for the support of family, Arvada Covenant youth pastor Keith Hamilton and wife Debbie, and countless others during the past year.

"It's definitely been a struggle with questions like: Why? Why us? Why now with the children being so young?" Laura asks. "I guess I always fell back to my faith, that God's in control and He has a plan. I've seen that plan through the accident, before the accident and after the accident, so I know that there's no other way but to trust," she continued. "One thing I've learned is the response of God's people to people in need. People have been so generous in things like writing notes, giving gifts, and it's something I'd like to learn personally," she continued. "That's become real to me."

In a recent edition of Impact youth ministry magazine, Jason shared some of the faith struggles he had as he adjusted to life in a wheelchair, writing about the highs and lows of trusting a God who seemed present and absent at the same time. "I remember crying out to Jesus one day in anger that he never had to live in a wheelchair, and instantly he came back with, 'Jason, you've never had to die on a cross.' "

Since then, Jason has begun to understand other biblical truths about being human and vulnerable on this Earth. "Being physically handicapped and running into a lot of obstacles I feel a very real sense that I don't belong here, that this world isn't made for someone in a wheelchair," Arneson confided. "In that sense, it makes me long for heaven and the wholeness that comes from that. Reading in the bible that we're pilgrims and this world is not our home has really come alive for me - I can connect with that," he added. "Before, I may have been more comfortable in this world."

But, as he looks to the day when he feels more whole physically, he's trying to prepare for what God may have in store for him in Colorado or some other place. He seems at peace with his uncertain future, trusting that God's work during the past year will aid him in the next chapter of life.

"To be honest, I'm not exactly sure what I'm supposed to do now - I'm praying for what God would have for me in this next chapter of my life," Arneson said. "Physically, it's still pretty exhausting, so working full-time would be difficult. My current job is positive, it's nice to be part of a ministry," he noted. "But, I was very athletic before the accident, and while it's nice to administrate activities, it's hard not to participate. I still love working with students and I've counseled with students on a few recent retreats," he continued. "I feel like spiritually it's been a whole different ball game and I'm still learning to 'Walk with God' again. Maybe God's giving me time to search out a new spiritual paradigm."

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