One of our core values is Giving Ourselves Away, and yesterday the people of Next Level Church lived that out in fine fashion.
The challenge was passed down from the stage a few weeks earlier: to collect school supplies and backpacks for 150 kids whose families have a tough time putting the money together to buy them. Fast forward a few weeks, and yesterday at Matthews and Stone Creek, backpacks were everywhere!
After church, there was a big pizza party/backpack giveaway, and between the campuses, we had over 300 Next Level attendees and backpack families show up. It was such a cool thing to look out and see all kinds of people hanging out, eating pizza, talking, and having fun. It was hard not to smile watching the kids open up their new backpacks and see what treasure lie inside.
I heard a cool story from the Stone Creek campus. There was a little girl, about ten years old, who wandered over to the backpack table and, overflowing with excitement, gave all of the backpacks a look down to see which one she liked the best. She decided that the pink one in the middle of the stack was her favorite. When it came time to hand out the backpacks, she was disappointed to learn that each one already has the name of a child on it. The volunteer looked at the pink backpack she liked so much and it had her name on it.
She wore it all over campus for the rest of the day.
All in all, it was a fantastic day. Thanks so much Next Level for your heart to serve and your desire to give yourselves away.
All in all, it was a fantastic day. Thanks so much Next Level for your heart to serve and your desire to give yourselves away. How cool would it be to be known as the church that gives themselves away?
