Serving others is all about building relationships with those you serve, but also those you serve with. How can you invite more people to be a part of your service project back home? Here are three steps to sharing your story and help others to serve alongside you.
Your service project is not just a project. It’s a story of how God is using you to make a difference in your community. Take some time to look back on what has happened in the lives of your youth group and those whom you have served, and look for the beautiful story that God is writing through it. People love stories and will be eager to join your cause if they can get a picture of what you are doing and how you are helping the community. When you ask others to be involved, think of creative ways you can help them know your story and want to join it.
“The destiny of the world is determined less by the battles that are lost and won than by the stories it loves and believes in.” –Harry Goddard
You’ve now had some time to think about your service story and are ready to share it with others. But who should you share it with?
The Servers: Take some time to research what groups or organizations are passionate about your cause or those you are serving. Are there ways you could work together to increase your impact in the community? Here’s Gabi & Josh’s story of how partnering with others in their community helped them serve better:
“With our project, our partnership with our Orphan Ministry helped us know the need in our community. Finding someone who has knowledge of the needs helped us figure out what we can do. We had an instant connection to the Department of Children’s Service through our Orphan Ministry.”
The Wannabe Servers: Just like you, there are many people in your church and community that want to serve others but might not know how. You can help others serve by simply asking them to join your project! Wannabe servers are hiding everywhere: at your church, at the local hardware store, at your school, in your family… Here’s another story from Gabi and Josh of how sharing their service story with people at their church and at the local craft store led to some great partnerships.
“Sharing our story with our church allowed us to tap people with different resources. A member of our church was able to help us in a big way by providing discounts at Joann Fabrics. We also were able to spread the word to people outside of our church community while at Joann’s. Some people were really interested in why we were buying three carts worth of fabric. We got to share the story with five different people!”
When you share your service story with others, let them know how they can be a part of it! Giving specific opportunities of how others can join your project will make it easier for them to partner with you. Here are four ways people can give to your project:
Perhaps, like Trent, Gabi and Josh, you have a service story of how loving others might or already has affected your community. We’d love to hear the story of what you’re doing in your community. Share it with us by messaging YouthWorks on Facebook or emailing us at marketing@youthworks.com