Month: June 2012

Next week is Summer Spectacular when over 1,000 kids will be at our church for an awesome week of fun, friendship-building, and creative learning. If you haven’t signed your kids up yet, what are you waiting for? Also, if you are an adult who’s been attending Southwest for at least 6 months, we really need more volunteers. Sign both you and your child up at www.southwestkids.org.

When you see someone holding up a sign, “Will Work for Food,” Do you roll down your window and give them money? Do you pretend you didn’t see them? Nobody likes being confronted by the homeless – their needs often seem too overwhelming – but we all want to treat them fairly and justly.

Here are 8 simple guidelines from the Coachella Valley Rescue Mission to equip you to truly help the homeless people you meet:

1. Never give cash to a homeless person. Too often, well intended gifts are converted to drugs or alcohol – even when the “hard luck” stories are true. If the person is hungry, buy them a sandwich and a beverage.
2. Talk to the person with respect. Taking time to talk to a homeless person in a friendly, respectful manner can give them a wonderful sense of civility and dignity; it gives the person a weapon to fight the isolation, depression and paranoia that many homeless people face.
3. Recognize that the homeless people (and their problems) are not all the same. The homeless are as diverse as the colors of the rainbow. The person you meet may be a battered woman, an addicted veteran, someone who is lacking job skills…the list goes on.
4. Share God’s love whenever you can. If God were walking the earth today, He would certainly spend time with the homeless. Today, God chooses to work through those who believe and follow Him.
5. Pray for the homeless. Exposure to the elements, dirt, occasional violence, and lack of purpose all drain years from a person’s life. God can use your prayers to bring many of the broken to Himself.
6. Take precautions for your own safety. Always be prudent while talking with street people. Stay in areas where other people can see you. Don’t take unnecessary chances.
7. Encourage the homeless to get help through your local mission. Rescue missions offer immediate food and shelter to the homelessness through their emergency shelters. Many offer long-term rehabilitation programs that deal with the root causes of homelessness.
8. Support your local Mission. Most missions receive little or no government funding; we are supported by caring individuals, churches, businesses, and civic groups who see the value of sharing their resources with the less fortunate.

Care Packages
Another simple, practical way to help the homeless is to make and carry some care packages with you in your car that you can give to people when you meet them. Your local Dollar Store is a great place to maximize your money to create packages. Here are some things to include:

• Water bottle 
• Snacks (be sure they won’t melt if it’s hot in your location.)
• Wet Wipes
• Toothbrush/toothpaste
• Kleenex
• Deodorant
• Soap
• Chapstick
• Sunscreen
• A contact card for a local mission that can help them
• Bible verse or even a small Bible
• Gloves or handwarmers
• Socks

Today I received the rare “Thank You” letter from a student who’s finishing 8th grade and moving up into our high school ministry. I thought I’d pass along by way of encouragement for those of you who serve in the trenches of youth ministry. What we do is valuable and important! Thanks for loving students!

I had soo much fun last summer and all through my 8th grade year! I had fun getting baptized, joining a small group, and serving! And I cant wait to keep living a life I know how to live because you tought me how to connect with Jesus and you brought me through school … with your support. And I met so many new people because of the opportunity you guys gave me! (Sorry, I’m like crying right now cuz i have to leave) 😥 Thanks so much for being there! 🙂 love you all!

For over 10 years I have personally sought to harness the popularity of social networking sites as a means of connecting with people I’ve met in the various places and during different seasons of life, and as a way to partner with God in His work of new creation. This past weekend I traveled to New York and very much enjoyed reading The Church of Facebook by Jesse Rice during my flights. The book explores how the hyperconnected are redefining community.

Rice explores several inventions throughout history – how they produced unpredictable outcomes which forced people to reinvent, redefine, and reshape how they interacted with the world around them. Social networking is doing just such a thing in today’s world. He looks at the physical and psychological implications of hyperconnectivity, boundaries, responsibility, the nature of genuine community, and whether and how Christians should engage social media as a redemptive tool.

The book is very thoughtfully written and provocative. I would highly recommend it to anyone and everyone who is interested in better understanding the context in which we live, and who cares about joining with God in His redemptive work in the world.