Partnering with God in His activity in this world can be daunting. There seems to be more want than need and less concern than apath, and the sheer magnitude of inequity can stifle rather than inspire us to action.
The youth of Green Lake Church engaged in a midsummer week of service in greater Seattle to alleviate want in their community.
The week of service began at Queen Anne Food Bank where the church donated 50 pounds of quality food to replenish the food bank's pantries. The group helped clean the building, pick up trash, mop floors, clean a van and organize food donations.
Youth volunteers next spent time at Northwest Harvest where they repackaged 3,800 pounds of oats for 2,923 meals. For the third service project, youth helped Cypress Adventist School prepare the grounds for another school year.
The fourth and final project brought the volunteers to World Vision’s distribution warehouse in Fife. Youth spent three hours processing old Vacation Bible School programs to be recycled or reused.
Interspersed with the service projects, the team cooled off in the Puget Sound, boated with church members and went to a water park, among other activities.
The group agreed the week of service was educational as participants learned they cannot change everything but can change some things.
Green Lake Church hopes to make this week of service an annual event as they seek to live in a community of Jesus-followers who are so inspired by the vision of a reconciled Earth they are spurred to action in the present.