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Passing It On

June 15th, 2010 by Administrator

By Elita Fung

Working at Toronto City Mission in the community of St. James Town can be such a blessing.  Even so, it is easy to get into the rut of believing that we are there to give to the community, without having eyes to see how the community gives to each other and to us.

The past few months have been a lesson in generosity for me, as I have watched the families we work with from a high-needs neighbourhood share with one another.  There were many highlights, including the mothers cooking and bringing dishes to our community potlucks and Bible studies.  I also had the chance to see some of our teens give what they can in way of encouragement to one another, as well as share their faith zealously with their classmates.  The pinnacle for me, however, happened about a month ago when I noticed three of our young kids in our after-school program going around with a piece of paper.  When I approached them, I realized they were writing down the names of other kids and next to their name, an item such as “chips”, or “popcorn”.  When I asked what they were doing, they told me they were planning a party at Kids Club and these were the people bringing something to share.  They were organizing a potluck party of their own, without direction from any adult leader! – and they kindly invited all the leaders to attend as well.

It was a fabulous reminder that as workers and volunteers who go into these communities, we do not have a monopoly on giving and that there is no hierarchy in giving and receiving.  After all, everything we have comes from a generous Father.  And what better way to learn that than from children?