MINISTRY OF THE MONTH
Youth With Purpose is a club determined to make service a lifestyle. The group is comprised of approximately 25 to 30 youth ranging from the ages of 12 to 17. These teens are all members of the Seventh-day Adventist church of the Oranges in Orange, NJ. Since January of this year, they have committed to contributing one thousand hours of volunteer service to their community
The youth meet every 1st and 3rd Sabbath, immediately after church service, for a moment of prayer and singing. They then go to their local homeless shelters. While there, they section themselves off into three groups. One group serves food, another distributes clothing and hygiene products such as lotion, toothpaste, shampoo and soap. All of these items are provided by their church family. The third group gives a mini concert as they pass out literature on how to meet Jesus.
As the people come for food, they also come for prayer. What a sight to see young people praying for drug addicts to overcome addiction, and those who are drunk to become sober. Others ask them to pray for employment and to be reunited with family members who have disowned them.
So far this year, Youth With Purpose has served approximately 500 plates of food, given 400 personal care products and over 300 items of clothing. People are being served and lives are being changed. This initiative is also helping to make young people productive citizens. Because of their consistent service, Youth With Purpose has received recognition by the local government. They were featured in the local paper with Mayor Mims Hackett as he awarded them tickets to the New Jersey Nets basketball game. More recently, the club has won the Community Leadership Award from H.A.N.D.S. Inc.—a community development cooperation based in Orange, New Jersey.
"For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me." Matthew 25:35, 36 NIV
What motivates this group? For Youth With Purpose, serving others is serving Christ. www.orangenjsda.org