Learning To Do Unto Others...

Train up a child in the way he should go ... and when he is old he will not depart from it. —Proverbs 22:6

These wonderful words of encouragement in parenting from God’s Word are part of the impetus for the development of The Children’s Village ‘servanthood project’ for our children. In a day and time when children often receive more than they need, we want our children at The Children’s Village to not only be appreciative and respectful of their gifts and care they receive, but to also experience the blessing of reaching out to others. This is a type of “pay it forward” experience for each and every one of them.

We are taking this Bible verse seriously, and we have challenged our house parents in each cottage at The Village to identify a “servanthood project” for their cottage children to be completed no less than once every other month. The area of their service project is determined by the cottage family.

This project has turned into a wonderful opportunity for our children at The Village. They have not only embraced the idea, but it has now expanded into a monthly event for several of our cottages. We are seeing blessings both given and received through their efforts. One of our girls cottages adopted one of our Senior residents on campus and assisted with clean up around the inside and outside of the home.

Recently, several of the boys and their relief house parent volunteered at the FISH HOUSE. The FISH HOUSE is a ministry of Jesus’ Place in Atlanta, serving as a home for men who have been through a drug rehabilitation program, and have committed themselves to remain in the program for 6 months.

The boys from The Children’s Village helped prepare and pack lunch bags for 2 hours to help feed men, women and young people who live on the streets of Atlanta, homeless and hungry. The Director at the FISH HOUSE told house parent Mike Cater that our young men saved them approximately 8 hours of work, preparing just under 500 meals.

We are trusting God that He will use these servant-hood projects in our effort to “train up a child in the way he should go”, so that it will help instill in the hearts and minds of our children that it is indeed more “blessed to give than to receive”. It is our prayer that this might encourage our children to live a life of gratitude and service to others in HIS name, so that “when they are old they will not depart from it”.