Mission JC

On Sunday, April 26, I hopped in my car and headed downtown towards church. However, I stopped a couple blocks away from the church building and never went in it. No one went to the sanctuary for worship that morning. The worship service wasn't cancelled; we worshipped in a different way.

Five churches in Jefferson City gathered together for Mission JC, a morning of community service. The slogan for the effort is "In the City for the City." The effort started in 2013 as a ministry of First Baptist Church, but has grown each year as other churches join. The day started with short rally on the lawn of the Missouri Capitol just a few blocks away from the participating churches. A Baptist led a couple of songs and a Presbyterian offered a brief homily. 

I wrote about Mission JC and the idea of worshipping through volunteer service in a Word&Way article last month. But now I actually got to experience it. 

Along with my wife and son, I headed to a local park do so some work. There were a total of 54 projects that offered a wide variety of volunteer tasks for the 450 or so people who joined Mission JC this year. I spent much of my time killing weeds in the name of Jesus and then piling them up as my morning offering.

Before...

After...

As I pulled weeds, there were moments when I stopped and looked around. A cooling breeze hit my face, the birds sang a hymn, and the trees waved along. Yes, worship happened there!

Later in the morning, I helped water some newly-planted flowers. I also took a break for some (unofficial) communion: granola bars and water.

The cutest part of the morning came when watching my three-year-old son and his friend help with projects. They spread out mulch, dug holes, and watered plants. And watered more plants. They spent a long time heading down the hill to the water spout and then together carrying the bucket back up to the new flowers.

It's a picture of what church should look like. Friends working together to make a healthier and more beautiful community.