‘Tis the season for kids to begin writing their Christmas wish lists, but this year the middle school students at North Point Ministries in Georgia are making a different kind of wish list. They’re wishing for enough gift-filled shoe boxes to bless 5,000 needy kids this Christmas.
Each November, North Point’s middle school ministry defies culture. Shifting attention off Black Friday sales and the hottest toys, the students participate in a series of messages about serving others and putting the needs of others first.
“Middle school students are by nature inward thinking people, and we wanted to provide an opportunity for them to broaden their point of view,” said Clint Nowery, director of Xtreme (middle school ministry) at the Browns Bridge Community Church.
A sermon series on service seemed incomplete without a way for students to put action to words.
“If you have ever worked with middle school students, you know it is nearly impossible to find a mission trip or service project that provides them an opportunity to add value,” said Nowery. “Then we heard about Operation Christmas Child.”
Operation Christmas Child—a kids-helping-kids project—starts with a simple shoe box that volunteers fill with toys, necessity items, school supplies, candy and often a hand-written note of encouragement. The gifts are then hand-delivered using whatever means necessary—ships, trucks, buses, trains, airplanes, helicopters, boats, camels, even dog sleds—to reach suffering children.
“Operation Christmas Child provides our students with the chance to put others before themselves,” said Nowery. “In today’s culture, it is easy for students to think life revolves around their wants and needs, and this project gives them a broader perspective on life and how God can use them to help others if they are willing to do their part.”
Throughout November, students will collect toys and supplies to fill the shoe box gifts. At the end of the series, they celebrate with a huge shoe box packing party where each student has the opportunity to pack his or her own shoebox, write a special note to the shoe box recipient, and spend time praying for the child who will receive the box. In 2009, they packed 3,100 shoe box gifts. Their 2010 goal is 5,000 shoe box gifts.
“Operation Christmas Child is a blast!” said Noah Causey, an eighth grade student. “We have such a great time decorating boxes, filling them with gifts and writing notes for the kids who receive the boxes. It is awesome that you can have fun and be used by God to help those in need at the same time.”
North Point Ministries in Georgia has been involved in Operation Christmas Child for four years, collecting some 6,300 shoe box gifts. Since 2007, participation in Operation Christmas Child has spread from the middle school ministry to nearly every ministry within North Point.
“It’s exciting to see the whole church involved in the project,” said Nowery. “When families participate in serving others together, they become living illustrations of the truths we are trying to instill.”
This fall, North Point Ministries joins a nationwide effort to collect 8 million gift-filled shoeboxes for needy kids in 100 countries, including children in Haiti, where the youngest victims of the earthquake are in desperate need of encouragement and hope.
The world’s largest Christmas project, Operation Christmas Child is a project of international Christian relief and evangelism organization Samaritan’s Purse, headed by Franklin Graham. Since 1993, Operation Christmas Child has hand-delivered shoe box gifts to more than 77 million hurting children in more than 130 countries.
To learn about how your group can become involved with Operation Christmas Child, call 800.353.5949 or visit SamaritansPurse.org. National Collection Week for gift-filled shoe boxes is Nov. 15-22; however, shoe box gifts are collected all year at the Samaritan’s Purse headquarters in Boone, North Carolina.
