These junior high school students had one thing on their minds during a
summer visit to Shreveport – showing God’s love through helping others.
Even though most of the students had little experience in home
repair, the 110 youths spent five days cleaning and painting house exteriors,
replacing porches and putting up siding on 11 residences in low-income areas
of Shreveport.
These junior high school students had one thing on their minds during a
summer visit to Shreveport – showing God’s love through helping others.
Even though most of the students had little experience in home
repair, the 110 youths spent five days cleaning and painting house exteriors,
replacing porches and putting up siding on 11 residences in low-income areas
of Shreveport.
Seven junior high youth groups from five nearby states –
Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Texas and Tennessee – spent a week in the
Louisiana city in late July participating in World Changers, a ministry sponsored
by the Southern Baptist North American Mission Board.
World Changers projects focus on home repair and community
service while giving student volunteers a hands-on lesson in missions.
Each summer, groups of junior high, high school and college
students pay their own way to go on trips during which they repair low-income
homes and work within neighborhoods to share their faith. This summer, more
than 16,000 students participated in 72 projects around the world.
These included the effort in Shreveport, which marked the sixth
time that World Changers has visited the city.
Russell Aguirre, 14, of Atlanta, says he took the trip to Louisiana
in order to get a different type of missions experience than he had had in previous
years.
“I’m learning that helping people is fun,” Aguirre
says.
The students working in Shreveport were separated into 11 “crews”
of about 10 people each. Each crew was assigned a house in need of work.
The Shreveport Department of Community Development found the
houses in need of repair. It also furnished the necessary materials for the
projects. The students provided the labor. Local businesses donated materials
and other items such as phones and ice for the week.
“The more you can get the community involved, the better
it is,” says Linda Griffin, administrative assistant for the Northwest
Louisiana Baptist Association.
Shawn Hawkins brought a group of eighth grade students from
Houston to Shreveport. She says World Changers projects give the students an
opportunity to meet others and help those less fortunate than themselves.
“They’re seeing how other people live, allowing them
to see the conditions and (understand) that there are people all over that need
Jesus,” Hawkins says.
Volunteer construction coordinator Wendell Collins emphasizes
that he hopes to see more than just house repairs resulting from the week’s
work.
“My greatest desire is to see folks give their lives to
the Lord. I’m just praying that we can reach some of these folks,”
Collins says. “I want to get the work done on the houses, but that’s
really secondary.”
Before taking the trip, students went through a pre-project
Bible study to help prepare them for the task at hand. They also participated
in a missions project at home.
“It prepared them to do whatever may be asked,” Hawkins
points out. “We let them learn to see what it means to have a servant heart.”
Laura Bailey, 13, of Memphis, Tenn., says she used the week
of preparation to work on her personal spiritual growth. “I knew my Christian
life wasn’t going so well, and I wanted to get closer to God and reach
others for God,” the Tennessee young person explains.
Allison Bell, 14, from Terry, Miss., says she has learned the
importance of helping others as a result of the World Changers effort. “You
always see on the news all the bad things that are happening. To get out here
and see what things are really like puts a new perspective on things,”
Bell says.
While in Shreveport, the student volunteers worked from 8 a.m.
to 3 p.m. every day and participated in worship services at night. They stayed
at Calvary Baptist Church in Shreveport, and local churches provided meals for
the group.
Spokesperson Eric Lanford says the goal of World Changers is
to educate students about missions and show them that everyone can be a missionary.
“I hope it sparks their love for missions and causes them
to do things more than just World Changers,” he says.