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Editor's note
It’s no secret that our service to others often enriches us as well. The service programs of Mennonite Mission Network make the point explicitly in their slogan, “Give yourself. Gain everything.” But receiving benefits from service isn’t what motivates most volunteers. They want to meet the physical, social and spiritual needs of others. Benefits to the volunteer, like testing leadership skills or achieving clarity about a career, come as a byproduct of giving one’s time and abilities where there is need. However, because volunteers are usually in their assignments for only a year or two, their impact on those they meet is not always easy to measure. I often wonder if my two years in voluntary service had a lasting, positive impact on the people in the Atlanta neighborhood where I lived. Yet that experience certainly enriched me in countless practical and spiritual ways. In this issue of Beyond Ourselves, you will read stories of how service has enriched the lives of volunteers, both young and old. We may debate whether service is preparation for more intentional kingdom work, as Jeff Linthicum suggests in his comments on page 10, or it’s in fact the beginning of kingdom work. I experienced voluntary service as a rich time of reorienting priorities, testing skills and intellectual challenge. After two years in the inner city, I could never read the newspaper or the Bible the same way again. And that experience and reorientation has affected the decisions of a lifetime. In this issue: Features Highlights Viewpoints |
