Week Two Light The Community
I don't think that I'm the only one that will find it funny, that the week I start my Christmas break from the various clubs and volunteer work I do in the community, that the Church I belong to, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, has decided that Lighting the Community is the weeks focus for service completed by members in the Light The World Campaign they run each Christmas time.
Luckily for me, Dan Jon and Top Ender have had some great ideas on how we can help those around us, including some secret cookie deliveries for some neighbours and we're taking a trip to our Local Food Bank with some extra shopping that we have done on behalf of our family and my Mum.
The thing that gets me all the time, is how people say that there is nothing on in their local community for young people. Or how their local community is so uninvolved and nobody ever does anything. That's because we've lost touch with our local community. We don't, on a whole, volunteer in our local community, we don't go out of our way to help our neighbours or to cultivate relationships, or build community. Don't get me wrong, I love my online friends, but it is only if we actually grit our teeth and get on with it that we will find that community spirit again.
I can honestly say, that volunteering to help groups in the local community is a great way to spend your time. I know for a fact that there are children in the local area where you live, who would love a Grown-up to spend time with them each week either at a local School, where you can volunteer to be a Class helper, a School Governor, on the PTA, at a youth club (Girl Guiding and Scouting love people who want to sign up to help out) or a number of ways, that I am sure you know about and are just waiting for a nudge in the right direction to volunteer with.
Consider this your nudge.
Week three the focus is to Light your Family and in Week four, it is to Light your faith and everyone is invited to join us for a one hour service at their local meeting house on December 23rd. Locations and times for these services at the meeting houses of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints can be found in the meeting house locator on LDS.org.
Luckily for me, Dan Jon and Top Ender have had some great ideas on how we can help those around us, including some secret cookie deliveries for some neighbours and we're taking a trip to our Local Food Bank with some extra shopping that we have done on behalf of our family and my Mum.
The thing that gets me all the time, is how people say that there is nothing on in their local community for young people. Or how their local community is so uninvolved and nobody ever does anything. That's because we've lost touch with our local community. We don't, on a whole, volunteer in our local community, we don't go out of our way to help our neighbours or to cultivate relationships, or build community. Don't get me wrong, I love my online friends, but it is only if we actually grit our teeth and get on with it that we will find that community spirit again.
I can honestly say, that volunteering to help groups in the local community is a great way to spend your time. I know for a fact that there are children in the local area where you live, who would love a Grown-up to spend time with them each week either at a local School, where you can volunteer to be a Class helper, a School Governor, on the PTA, at a youth club (Girl Guiding and Scouting love people who want to sign up to help out) or a number of ways, that I am sure you know about and are just waiting for a nudge in the right direction to volunteer with.
Consider this your nudge.
Week three the focus is to Light your Family and in Week four, it is to Light your faith and everyone is invited to join us for a one hour service at their local meeting house on December 23rd. Locations and times for these services at the meeting houses of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints can be found in the meeting house locator on LDS.org.
So, I'd like to invite you to take part too. Find out about it on Mormon.org, download a calendar to help you remember the different themes each week (although I'm going to be posting about them each week too) and check out the #LightTheWorld hashtag on different Social Media platforms to see what others are doing and hopefully inspire you too.