Your Family and Community Engagement
With summer on our doorsteps, many parents are looking for activities to engage their children in their communities, but don’t know where to begin. Oftentimes, options for kids can be overwhelming, with community offerings including: sports, a variety of camps, museum programs, and social clubs. While these are all good opportunities, one excellent way to enrich your child’s growth is by teaching them to serve others.
Why are we called to serve?
“When we serve, we learn patience, compassion, sacrifice, and empathy. We learn how to relate to those who are different from us. Most importantly, however, we are learning to love and serve God.”
By teaching our children (and ourselves) to serve others, we are teaching them to love others. When we serve, we learn patience, compassion, sacrifice, and empathy. We learn how to relate to those who are different from us. Most importantly, however, we are learning to love and serve God. Jesus shares these words, found in John 13:34-35 (ESV): “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
Serving others also opens up opportunities to share the gospel. The first step in serving is to cover our community engagement in prayer. Trust God to lead as you discover the needs of those you encounter. Even if your encounters are brief, you have the opportunity to plant a small seed of kindness–and you may never know what growth that individual may experience.
I Timothy 2:1-4 (ESV) “First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”
Tips to consider when looking for service opportunities:
Do you want to serve on a weekly or monthly basis, or are you more interested in participating in a handful of special events? Study the organization’s website or social media pages for advertised volunteer or donation needs.
Some community organizations may have a minimum age for volunteers, while others may require that volunteers under a certain age are paired with a parent or guardian while volunteering.
Organizations have different volunteer application and orientation processes. Some require background checks for adults, and others may ask for references. Others may have a more relaxed onboarding policy, particularly for special events. If your children need volunteer hours for extra-curricular programs, let the volunteer coordinator know ahead of time.
Consider joining with others from your family, church, or neighborhood to make a greater impact. Group project ideas include: a food drive with a day to deliver and sort goods at a pantry, a day cleaning or organizing for a community outreach organization, mowing yards and basic property maintenance for persons in need, or organizing a garage sale, bake sale, or other small fundraiser to donate to a local charity.
Perhaps you could reach out to nursing homes or senior centers, and see if they could use companions to simply spend time visiting those who are often isolated from their families. Check and see if they could use care packages, or simply cards or drawings with encouraging messages.
Don’t forget to reach out to those closest to you. Do you have a family member or friend facing a challenging medical diagnosis, or maybe a new baby is on the way? Perhaps they could use some meals, help with pets, or basic cleaning around the house.
A Little Encouragement:
The more children start to become involved in their community, the more they will become sensitive to other people’s needs. My hope and prayer is that we would all become more aware of how to reach into the lives of others, and share the love of Jesus.
I John 3:18 (ESV) “Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.”