Psalm 95:12-15

12 The righteous flourish like the palm tree,
and grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
13 They are planted in the house of the Lord;
they flourish in the courts of our God.
14 In old age they still produce fruit;
they are always green and full of sap,
15 showing that the Lord is upright;
he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.

Today marks the beginning of day three of our mission trip to Yarnell to help with the fire recovery. Our theme this year is Serve, Sweat, Grow. After two days we have had no problem serving and sweating, and today I asked the students a little bit about how they are growing. 

They have talked about meeting people who had lost everything in the fires. They mentioned stories about how they had heard that before the fires there wasn’t much sense of community or community pride in Yarnell - but now there is. They talked about some people who weren’t so nice to work for, but how they did it anyway because that is what they were asked to do. 

The thing that struck me the most was that many of them talked about our visit to the Shrine of St. Joseph on Tuesday. Before the fires, the Shrine of St. Joseph was the one thing that Yarnell was known for. Much of the area in the shrine had been destroyed, however the 14 stages of the cross that are depicted there remained; showing signs of fire damage, yet still remaining. 

We headed up the shrine going through all 14 stages. We started with the Last Supper, then quickly moved to Jesus praying in the garden, his arrest, trial, carrying his cross etc. The story of the cross was nothing new to anyone in our group. We all have heard the story and we all know how it ends. As we were going up one of our leaders noticed a sign on the station where the Roman soldiers cast lots for Jesus’ clothes. It said, “Jesus did not have a lot, but what he did have was taken away from him. So no matter what you are dealing with, whether you have lost your job or your home, Jesus knows how you feel, as he, too, lost everything.” 

Our leader made the comment that the plaque wasn’t new, it had been there for years. She could imagine the impact of those words, written years earlier, on the people of Yarnell who would come there seeking to find answers to why they lost everything. Instead they would find Jesus. She then went on to say how it really puts life into perspective.

As we exited the 14 stations we come to a tomb with Jesus laying in it. One of our students went in to the tomb to look at a statue of Jesus laying in the tomb. He said when he was in there it hit him how big that moment was in the history of man. God coming to earth and dying for our sins really hit him and he couldn’t really explain what he felt, but he felt something. 

The reason we serve and sweat on missions trips isn’t just to do work, but to GROW in our understanding of who God is. For many of our students, the Bible has always been a book about Jesus, but they are starting to see it for what it is - a love story. The cross isn’t about punishment or judgment but about love  and God’s love for us. 

Being my first mission trip with the youth of Pinnacle, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. What I am finding is a group of teens who love to serve, and want nothing more than to grow in their experience and knowledge of God. I can only hope that the words of the Psalmist run true for our students; that they will flourish like the palm tree and grow like a cedar in Lebanon. That they will remain planted in the house of the Lord and continue to flourish in the courts of our God - and when they get older they will draw on these experiences, these moments they have with God, and not walk away, but still produce fruit.

In reality, this isn’t just a hope for our youth, but for all those who have experienced God. No matter where we are in life, we must continue to grow in Christ so that we might produce fruit, so that others might also experience the love God has for us. Amen.

Just thinking out loud about a difference that makes a difference in Christian ethics.  That's the difference between "charity" and "mission" (for lack of a better word). 

It would be easy to disparage one in order to lift up the other, which would predictably leave charity a sad, if gilded, handmaid of mission.  I'd rather not do that, though.  Charity, or what we've also called "benevolence" has its place.  Without it, mission would be impossible.  Charity gives to perceived need or in support of a social good, and perceived needs should be met and social goods should be supported.  I like charity.  It's good when people give of what they have to help, even if it's the extra and not the "stuff." 

I should be more charitable.  And so should you.  I got no truck with charity.

Ah, but mission.  Mission is a God-given something else.  It's fleeting, harder to point to, but as essential to living a good and holy life as charity. 

How do we spy the difference?

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Well, a charity usually tickles one part of us.  Maybe it something that pulls at the heart.  Maybe it's a problem that needs the attention of your mind. 

A mission, however, tickles all of us—heart, mind, spirit, and even our network of relationships.

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A charity inspires us to act on its behalf.

A mission teaches us something we didn't know, even if we didn't think it would.  In that, it changes us. 

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A charity satisfies our impulse to help.

A mission unsettles us.  It feels as much given to us as chosen by us.  It's not an obsession that controls us; it's a passion that makes us.  And there's a difference between those two.

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A charity provides an opportunity to achieve a goal. 

A mission humbles us with a reordering of our priorities.  When something becomes a mission, we can tolerate failure and setbacks without giving up, for we labor on toward faithfulness and truth in a mission rather than toward mere success.

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A charity is in some ways self-satisfied and goes about recruiting others.

A mission is open to correction, and frees others to participate with simple invitation.

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A charity expresses our sense of responsibility.  Our response is a gracious "you're welcome."

A mission shapes our identity, and feels like a privilege.  Our response is an enthusiastic, "No . . . thank you."  A mission is not the object of our generosity, but a subject in our redeeming.

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I think I need a mission. 

In several short weeks thirty of the Pinnacle Presbyterian Church Senior High Youth and their leaders will travel to Chicago for their summer mission trip. They will be staying at the Fourth Presbyterian Church in downtown Chicago. Their week will be filled with opportunities to learn about and serve with a variety of organizations in the Chicago area that are fighting hunger and homelessness and poverty.

For most of the youth, particularly those who have gone on the trips before, these are highly anticipated events.  It is a chance to visit a new place, to spend time with other youth with whom they are close friends, and experience the bonding that can only come with sleeping, eating, and serving together over a week. For many youth, these trips are a fundamental part of growing their faith.

Along with the excitement and fun there are important building blocks for understanding mission work.

 Churches and mission groups need to think carefully and wisely about what they are doing and the communities they are serving.  Both in terms of our own theological underpinnings for why and how we engage in mission work, and in terms of understanding our own stereotypes and projections about poverty and the particular communities that we serve with.

Important theological basics for doing mission work include understanding that opportunities like this aren’t just trips or opportunities to get school required service opportunities. Doing justice, loving kindness, and walking humbly in faith with God are literally what we as people of faith are called to each day of our lives. It is also important to understand that we aren’t bringing God to the places we go- whether they be here in Phoenix, the greater U.S., or abroad. God is already there. It is our job to discover that and to participate in it.  Additionally, our service is a chance not to do for others but to serve with them. I love this quote that I discovered that I think names that well: “If you have come to help me, you are wasting your time. But if you have come because your liberation is bound up with mine, then let us work together.”

Important understandings about alleviating poverty in the places you are going include a thorough understanding blind spots and prejudices we bring with us in addition to knowledge of that particular community. Both of those are key to recognizing that not all helping is helpful and that sometimes the unintended consequences of rightly motivated efforts are long lasting for the communities we serve with. There are several good books on exactly this.  “When Helping Hurts…How to Alleviate Poverty without Hurting the Poor, And Yourself” and “Toxic Charity, How Churches and Charities Hurt Those They Help (and How to Reverse it) are two good resources.

 In his book, “Toxic Charity,” Robert Lupton writes, “Yes, many of our motives are noble. We want to invest in the lives of others. We want to expose adults and youth to the needs of a hurting world. We want to engage people in life changing experiences. Some of us are motivated by the teachings of Jesus…Often though, we miss the big picture because we view aid through the lens of the needs of our organization or church- focusing on what will benefit out team most-and neglecting the best interest of those we serve (pp 15).”

 It is important to ask – and keep asking – thoughtful questions before and after you dive into helping others. It can often mean avoiding harm for us and for those we serve alongside. It can also mean that we have a more lasting impact.

Please pray for our youth and their leaders as they prepare for their trip ahead!

 Basic Theological Understandings of Mission Work:

• Part of being on a mission trip or serving in the community is letting go of your own comfort
• God leads us into service. We do not “bring God” to the places we go. God is already there. There is no place we can go that God isn’t already present.
• Everyone has been given gifts to use for the common good. Your job is to discover how your gifts can be used in any given situation
• Mission and service are not about a “trip” or a “service opportunity.” Justice, kindness, and walking humbly with God are how God calls us to be in the world
• Jesus’ light resides within you. It is your job to share that light
• Our faith includes being pushed out into the wilderness (to the unknown) by the Holy Spirit
• Each time we give our gifts away the experience changes how we live. Giving ourselves away in the name of Jesus reshapes us.
• There is no place that is beyond God’s reach for hope, love and transformation.