Volunteering as a Family

by David Thomas


The importance of children as volunteers include the following:
-Promotes healthy lifestyle and choices - Encourages a lifelong service ethic
-Enhances development - Improves the community
-Teaches life skills - Gives them purpose

Volunteering also nourishes caring values as children relate to and empathize with others, and individuals who care about others. Youth who volunteer are less likely to be involved in negative behaviors. (Studies show that teens who volunteer just 2 hours per week have higher self-esteem and more resiliency and are 50 % less likely to smoke, drink, or do drugs.)

Kids who volunteer at a young age with their family members are
more likely to adopt a service lifestyle as adults.

Studies also show that volunteering can play a role in your health – improving your overall sense of well-being, alleviating chronic pain, and even reducing depression.

Summer JAM update

Tonight marks the halfway point of our Summer JAM VBS that we do in partnership with Preston Taylor Ministries (http://www.ptmweb.ik.org/). We have had lots of fun, both volunteers and kids alike! Our emphasis this week has been that we are all treasures of God and God's amazing love through us for Jesus.

Thank you to all who are volunteering to make this week special and keep up the prayers for our safety and that God would move in the kids hearts.

Here are some pictures of our fun!

Looking Back and Moving Forward

It has been a week since the team has returned from Ireland, and I am slow on getting out a final update. I find it difficult to try and briefly sum up a mission trip. How do you quantify the individual and group experience of 12 people? Let alone that of those we were serving and/or partnering with?

With that in mind, to answer the question that many have asked me about how the trip was, my uncreative answer has been "great". And it was great and powerful and meaningful. Ministry was done in an organic and beautiful way, and Christ's love shone brightly in the midst of darkness. To some traveling across the ocean to renovate a flat may seem like a project you can do here in the states. But a trip is so much about perspective building, exiting our world and entering anothers. You see the greatness and vastness of who the Lord is in new and different ways!

Looking forward, Hope For Nashville has hit the ground running in our final preparations for Summer JAM that begins next week! Please be praying that God would really use us and prepare our hearts to serve Him and the precious children we will be doing the VBS for.