Modern culture is filled with toys that cater to the self-indulgence of our teens: iPods, iPhones, iHomes…our students are told to think, “it is all about the ‘i’ of life, it is all about me.”
Two school leaders, Derek Swales and Brandon Wolf, desired to attack the “iPod, iPhone” culture and create a program to direct student hearts toward God and others and iServe was born. At the beginning of the 2007-2008 school year, Santa Clarita Christian School organized 22 different mission trips and service activities to occur over a one-week period in September. All students in grades 7 through 12 were allowed to choose what group they would join. It was a logistical challenge to move 25 teachers and 256 students to 22 locations from New York City to several locations in Southern California.
The goal of iServe was threefold: to further spiritual growth through service to others, to develop discipleship opportunities by connecting teachers and students in service together and to represent Christ in a positive way in our community. James 1:27 says, “Worship of God that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.” Jesus also told His disciples that when they gave food to the hungry, drink to the thirsty, clothes to the needy, and visited those who were sick and in prison, “Truly I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to Me” (Matt. 25:40). Santa Clarita Christian School created iServe to help our students live out their faith and serve others instead of themselves.
The mission trips and service opportunities were quite varied: working in a soup kitchen and street evangelism in New York City, working with the Joni Erickson Ministry for the handicapped, taking gifts to the sick in Los Angeles Children’s Hospital, working for the Hunger Defense Fund, working with a ministry on skid Row in LA, doing projects for Zoe Ministries that builds orphanages for abused children in Thailand, building projects for a Christian camp burned in recent fires, visiting the elderly, cleaning up beaches, helping at the local pregnancy center, removing graffiti at a local movie studio and working with a deaf and blind ministry in Los Angeles.
The impact of iServe has been tremendous. Students testified that getting their eyes off their own wants and serving those who are truly in need has impacted their lives in a profound way. Discipleship was rekindled between the teachers and students as they worked side by side. Real spiritual growth was realized as one student testified articulately, “I was upset to lose my fun retreat, but when I began serving, the Lord changed my heart and now I am so glad we did iServe.” Our students are already looking for other ways to serve during the remainder of the school year. The program “iServe” has successfully changed our students’ views of themselves and the world around them. We are thrilled to see hearts eager to make a difference for God in this world.
For more information, please call 661-252-7371.