Remember back to when you were in school. There was the routine of getting up at the same time every morning, eating the same cold cereal, finding the same seat on the bus, sitting in the same desk in each classroom, having lunch at the same table, knowing the bell was going to ring at the same time throughout the day, listening to the teachers teach the same subjects in the same order for days on end. Do you remember asking “Why do I ever need to need to know ___________? I will never use this in the real world.”
Now remember those very few days a year that were announced “We are going on a field trip next week!” Everyone goes into a frenzy for simply the thought of something different to do. An uncontained buzz of excitement, high fives, and laughter fill the room. There is so much excitement that you can’t even hear yourself think. You even see a little smile emerge on the teacher’s face for the frenzy she just caused. You don’t get to linger in this moment for very long, as the teach calls order back to the room. You think, “Oh yeah, she hasn’t even told use where we are going” (although that doesn’t really matter, you are just ready to get out of school). She announces where you are going and begins to explain the purpose behind the real life application of what you have been learning for weeks. You aren’t listening to much of what is being said as you have already begun in your mind the anticipation of “the field trip”.
Your attitude changes for the whole week in expectation of the field trip. You rush home thrilled to tell your parents what was announced in school that day and to ask them to sign your permission slip. You have conversations with friends on who will be who’s “buddy” that day. You even begin to think about what your mom might pack for lunch that day.
On the day of the field trip your entire routine is thrown out the window and there is a carefreeness (I don’t think that is a word) about life, even if just for a day. Your day started the same with the alarm clock going off, but there is pep in your step. You don’t eat the same breakfast; instead you opt for something warm. You don’t sit on the same seat on the bus on the way to school, because you sit with who is going to be your “buddy” on the field trip. Instead of hearing the same bells ringing, you hear the same energizing buzz (all day long) that you heard when the teacher announced the field trip.en begin to think about what your mom might pack for lunch that day.
And here comes the thing you were never anticipated to happen . . . you learned why you were being taught ________ and how it is used in the real world. Minds are opened, lights come on, and purposes are found when you get out of the everyday routine.
As an adult, today, do you need a field trip? We all do! As a pastor, local missions director, volunteer director, or lay leader are you ready to lead a transformation of your church through going on more “field trips”? Not field trips that require you or your staff to do more work, but instead that empower your people to plan them for themselves. Getting your congregation outside the four walls of your church, out of their normal routines, serving in the “real world”, putting their faith into action through love, having fun with other believers and best of all sharing Jesus Christ with those that don’t know Him are the keys to changing your culture. It will bring a fresh wind of attitude, joy, excitement, and purpose to their lives, to their families, to your church, and even to your city.
There are many very good resources (sermons, articles, books, blogs, etc) presented on the why you should serve outside the four walls of your church building. Bottom line is that it is the fulfillment of The Great Commission. Meet The Need is the application of how. You don’t have to plan a big event. Simply encourage your members to do their own family, small group, neighborhood “field trips” to serve others. With Meet The Need all they have to do is search and adopt needs directly from your website. Jesus served as a lifestyle by meeting people right where they were, not planning big events. Lead your members to do the same throughout the year.
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Just last night I gave a woman holding a sign some loose change. I did. I never do stuff like that, but she got to me. I have worked at Rescue Missions and I always give to them because they know the real story, they meet the Spiritual and physical need, and they move people towards self-sufficiency. I broke my own rule last night. I couldn’t help myself. Have you ever felt this way? It was a compassion-driven impulse (or perhaps the Holy Spirit).
