Youth Service Projects that Revitalize the Church

In both the CRC and RCA, there are a number of congregations worshiping in very old sanctuaries that need significant work. For some of these congregations, the contributions of members barely cover assessments and salaries and leave little or no funds for building upkeep.  Rarely do I see youth group service teams come in for a week to help revitalize the buildings and in so doing, revitalize the congregations of these aging churches.  I wonder why.

I realize that it takes coordination to pull off a service project like this.  So it would help if those congregations that needed help with their sanctuaries asked for assistance and organized the work weeks.  But then again, it would also be appropriate for a youth pastor who is looking for a meaningful service project to proactively offer to serve a congregation that might need the help.

In these types of service projects, there could be basic clean up, building, or painting opportunities. Often these churches are in urban areas, so the serve site also offers a variety of other options for both ministry and free time.

It’s most likely also going to be a lower cost service project for your congregation and for your youth.

I wish I could point you to a list of congregations that need this kind of revitalization assistance.  I hope some youth ministry organizations and classes take up this opportunity and provide locations. But in the mean time, you might just have to make a few calls and find these service projects on your own.

If anyone has other ideas for sharing these kinds of service opportunities, please feel free to reply to this blog.  Let’s share the ideas.