service on-ramps

Yes, I've read When Helping Hurts, and I've been on a journey of examining a continuum of service that, even with really good hearts and intentions, actually perpetuates brokenness and division on the one end to the way of service that heals, develops, and reconciles people on the other end.  So, with a growing awareness of what is and what is not defined as "good serving", I want to emphasize something else:
the need for and the power of the "first serve" or the serving "on-ramps" toward missional living.

Today, I served with a young friend for one hour at our local Northeast Iowa Food Bank in town.   We met and served with other junior highers from a YWCA program and a couple of UNI students who are social services majors.  One of the great benefits of serving in the community for me is that it has always given me an opportunity to meet people I would otherwise likely not have intersected with in life.

As I watched these teenagers serve today, I thought about how God worked through serving experiences in my youth....
1. He used serving experiences of my childhood to grow compassion in my heart.
2. Serving helped me see early on that there were differences between my life experiences and others' life experiences.  This caused me to begin reflecting and asking questions.
3. Scripture came to life for me as I would read about this Jesus who spent his whole life serving and giving, and as I read verse after verse about a God who cares deeply for those who are marginalized and who suffer in oppression and poverty.  God used serving to reveal to me Himself and His work to passionately set things right through Jesus.

When I was a youth director, God used serving in our community to help shape the teens' worldview and to grow them spiritually.  He also used serving to help people in our community experience a tangible touch of God's kindness and love.

Moving from the "unacceptable here" of our world to the Kingdom vision of "there" will require significant change to happen, but like every journey of a thousand miles, it begins with a single step and continues step after step.  Today reminded me that we cannot forget to offer the very tangible, very simple service on-ramps for young and old alike so that God might continue to lead us on this journey of growing His heart of compassion and justice within us....step by step.