Motivation to Serve

I saw a Facebook post that stated, “Sorry I can’t work tomorrow; I fractured my motivation.”  I actually entertained these thoughts myself last night.  The SCCHS Service Day plum wore me out.  A night of dead-to-the-world sleep healed my fractures, real or imagined.

The Student Council put together a well scheduled and intentional day for us.  We began the day with a student-led chapel and a Student Council coordinated and designed prayer walk around the entire school property, indoors and out.  Participating for one and one-half hours of prayer with the young folk energized the heart of even this old geezer.  Singing and prayer also set a great tone for the service work to be done.

Our students developed, organized, and managed a day of service work for the entire school, teachers included.  The locations were many and varied: Salvation Army, Pine Haven, trailheads, Our Home facilities, and others.  I had the privilege of delivering 25 students to the Good as New (G.A.N.).  As G.A.N. approaches the day of moving into the brand new facilities on Commerce Avenue in Cedar Grove, the pressure is on to close up the old store and ship all that stuff to the new store.  If you’ve been to the G.A.N. lately you’ve seen the monumental task ahead of the crowded yet faithful G.A.N. workers.  The SCCHS students were up to the     challenge of assisting - and then some.                  
                                                                                                                         

They filled boxes (egg and banana boxes being favored for size and strength – who knew?), moved boxes, folded clothes, packed hangers, ate copious quantities of pretzels, wrapped glassware, moved boxes, took down wall units, moved boxes, lifted heavy furniture, moved boxes, and moved boxes.  Gwendy Gesch, the manager of G.A.N. (and, providentially, my wife) shed joyful tears watching the store empty and the tension of the move fade.

There’s still a lot of work to do.  I’m sure Gwendy would find a way to use your moving skills in the next weeks.  But for one day SCCHS students stole the show.  Did walking and praying redeem lost souls?  Maybe.  Did Jackie Wisse’s organizational skills save lives?  I doubt it. Did a bunch of goofy freshman lugging egg boxes change the world?  Probably not so much.  Did conversations between seasoned veterans of G.A.N. (some with over 40 years of service) and first time workers radically alter life plans of the young folk?  Hopefully, but I’m not sure.

Still, the take away, as I see it, is successful, simple, selfless service to God by a close, Holy Spirit-filled community.  Yesterday the SCCHS community modeled the togetherness and hard work and joy and weariness on which, I believe, God could smile.

May God bless the students, staff, and supporting community for years to come: Sola Deo Gloria.

Kevin Gesch