CULTIVATING A HEART FOR OUTREACH. HOW TO START ‘EM YOUNG.

Restoration is a place that connects people to God, to others, and to the needs of the world. We are a church that seeks to support those most vulnerable who live both locally and globally. Yet, most of our outreach opportunities are for older teens and adults.

So how do we grow kids into adults who are chomping at the bit to serve others?

We are mindful of the opportunities we have with our RestoKids to both talk about and model what it means to serve others. The stories we study in kids’ small groups often highlight examples of others in the Bible who serve. The compliments we give to kids are specific about ways we observe their kindness in sharing markers or encouraging someone on the margin to join in a game. The annual packing of snack bags and writing notes to give to kids at AFAC is a hands-on way to help grow their hearts to love others.

This Christmas we have two opportunities for even the littlest among us to get involved in caring for folks outside of our immediate Restoration family:

Navidad para Niños. In the lower narthex at Restoration, there is a tree that contains photos of the children from Niños con Valor, one of the groups our 2016 Bolivia team got to hang out with while visiting last summer. Niños con Valor (NCV) is a family model of caring for Bolivian children who have been orphaned, abandoned, or removed from high-risk situations. Consider selecting a photo ornament from the tree to support our friends in Cochabamba, Bolivia. There are several ways you – and those little hands and hearts around you – can get involved:

• Pray for the children of Niños con Valor as they learn and grow. Sign up to receive prayer newsletters. Then pray for the children and encourage the children in your life to lead those prayers. You will be amazed by what you hear!

• Write to the children via email. The children in your life can even draw a picture to be photographed and included in the email to a sponsored child.

• Sponsor a child for $30/month or make a one-time donation.  Your contributions enable NCV to provide the love, guidance, support, education, and foundational building blocks for a promising future. It makes a world of difference! Email Endel or Kate Liias with any questions.

Doorways for Women and Children. Each year, on Christmas Eve, Restoration has given gifts to Doorways, a safe place where women and families can receive help. This year Restoration has been invited to bring in bedroom items. Here is a list of specific items most useful to the women and families Doorways supports. Bring your gifts to the Restoration Christmas Eve services at 3pm, 5pm, or 9pm. You’ll have a chance to bring them forward during the offering part of the service.

So, talk to kids and shop with kids and pray with kids. They will follow your example about how one loves and serves those among us who are most vulnerable – and their hearts will be the better for it.