Service Sundays For the Community

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Created on Friday, 14 March 2014 18:04

Written by Katrina Floranza

LYNDONVILLE - While many may find Sundays to be their "lazy day," the Lyndonville United Methodist Church uses Sunday as a day of service. However, on occasional Sundays, this service goes more towards their community.

Every three months, members of the church dedicate one Sunday as a "Service Sunday." A fairly new program that the church is still adapting to, it has already seen an increase in turnout. Aislinn Bowles, a member of the church, says, "The first time we started this program, there was only a handful of people who came and helped out. I would say it was about ten people. And now? Our last Service Sunday, we had about twenty people come."

Sundays are different on these dedicated Sundays. There is still a morning worship that begins at 10 a.m., but the worship only lasts thirty minutes, including communion.

During the service, members are encouraged to sign up under any of three or four groups that are listed for Service Sunday. Each group will then gather at the end of the worship and will split up, traveling to different homes or destinations doing different deeds for those in need.

"One time, we painted the gazebo over in the park. Another time, we raked leaves in the park. We have also done some clean up here and there. Sometimes, we go and help out certain individuals that people know need help—usually people in particular who might need help cleaning their yards or fixing up certain areas around their house. And then there's always one group who stays at the church. They write letters to people who they know aren't physically able to come to church. Last time, the group wrote letters and baked cookies for those they knew-- just to show appreciation," Bowles admires.

Service Sunday is a program inspired by Aislinn and her husband, Pastor Matthew. The inspiration came from the bigger church, The United Methodist Church, and their program called, "Change the World Sundays." After hearing about that program, the Bowles had decided to try and incorporate it into their small church for their community.

They feel as though this is a great way to reach outward. "The messages during those Sundays are focused on going outward and being the church outside the church walls. The church is the people. Sometimes it's easy for people to feel stuck inside the building and think that's the only place we do church. It's reminding us that we are called to be Christ's hands and feet in the world-- to be loving towards other people and showing that through our action not just our worship."

On top of the program helping the church be connected with the community, Aislinn also believes it helps show who they really are. "I think a lot of people have become disenchanted with the church and frustrated with the reputations of Christians. I think getting out and showing people that we care about them, that we are normal people, and that we love other people is really important. It can be really powerful and gets us a little bit away from all the bureaucracy of the church," says Aislinn. As she elaborates more on the image of Christianity, Aislinn laughs, "We wanted to get t-shirts for this program once that said, 'The Church Has Left the Building.'"

While the program is still growing, the church believes it's a great way to get connected to the area in which they live in and a great way to help their neighbors more. "A lot of the people here are connected to the community. Many of the people here are very connected and give much of their lives to serving the community. The ones who are involved every week, it's easy for them to just be like 'Oh yeah!' when it comes to different projects."

Service Sunday has only happened about four times so far, but it's not stopping members from bringing ideas of community service for the future. Due to the fact that it is a fairly new program, projects for Service Sundays have been discussed through word of mouth. However, the church is open for requests in which their service is needed and they say they are always looking for connections that would bring them to projects in which they would gladly love to be a part of.

The next Service Sunday is planned to come up in about a month, and many are brainstorming ways in which they can show their appreciation to the community businesses. "We're still brainstorming how to show appreciation to those who serve the community. We're brainstorming on how to show we notice what they're doing and that we care and we are thankful."

And while those in the community who have been helped show appreciation to this program, the church also believes that by helping the community, it's also helping them. Aislinn says, "I think that people are starting to really enjoy it. I love it. I feel like it's what we should be doing every week. It helps us remember what we're really about."