On a regular basis, students, parents, and volunteers at Immanuel Lutheran Church and School, Batavia, Illinois, partner together to go out into their community to share the love of God through Random Acts of Kindness. In the beginning, the students were nervous about the idea. Now, they’re eager for each time they go as a group and even have begun going out on their own.
How They Got Started
In an interim period where Immanuel did not have a director of their youth group, a group of parents gathered together to talk through and pray over ways they could continue to actively engage Immanuel’s junior high and high school students in church life, helping them to continue to build strong foundations of faith. The parents noticed their high school age students love mission trips and grow spiritually through their participation in them. So, they began considering ways to lead their students to be ‘on mission’ in their community on a regular basis. With some planning, the parents put together the first Random Acts of Kindness evening. It was held just after New Year’s while students were still on holiday breaks from school.
What It Looks Like
On Wednesday, January 2, 2019, 17 students met together at Immanuel ready to head out into the community. After some researching online, the parents had come up with a few ideas of things the students could put together to give away. While they put together a basket full of laundry supplies to bring to the laundromat, a basket of baby supplies for a diaper changing station at a local restaurant, and bags filled with quarters to drop off at a local dollar store, the students brainstormed ideas of other places they could go in their community to do random acts of kindness. While reflecting back on it months later, the students laughed as they told stories of how nervous they were before they began. Some students shared that they were nervous of what other people would think adding, “kindness is uncommon.” Still more students shared they were nervous, because “you never really go out with a specific purpose to be nice to people or to spread God’s Word. I didn’t want to say anything wrong or misrepresent God.”
Before heading out into the community the group of students, parents, and volunteers prayed over their time in the community, and then split up into groups, each with at least one adult volunteer driver and leader. The students shared they were very thankful for their prayers and leadership saying, “someone to lead encourages you on.” As they began ‘paying it forward’ by purchasing community members’ meals, delivering baskets, and even just simply giving out random, genuine compliments to other people in stores, the students grew more and more comfortable and eager to go do more random acts of kindness. When they returned back to the church at the end of the evening to share a meal and debrief, many of the students noted how most people’s response to their kindness was skepticism. They often asked “why?” or gave a quizzical and/or pleasantly surprised look when the students shared they’d like to pay for their meal, gave them a basket, or gave them a genuine compliment. When the students shared they were from Immanuel and what they were up to, the community members were shocked to hear the students were being kind for the primary purpose of being kind. Peace was brought into the midst of these students nerves, and they were encouraged to see how simple acts of kindness could have such impact on their neighbors’ days. One girl even told her dad, “we should do this as a family!”
How They Are In This Together
On March 10, Immanuel’s high school students gathered together once again for their high school youth group. Just that morning, Matt Cassidy had been installed as Immanuel’s Director of Student Ministries. As the students talked through things they would like to continue doing together, the Random Acts of Kindness were a high priority. A college senior, who has been a member of Immanuel for most of his life, now volunteers as a mentor with the high school students. As the students shared their thoughts on their first Random Acts of Kindness outing, he shared how, to him, these random acts of kindness are reflective of the Gospel, the saving work of Jesus in His life, death, and resurrection: the community members didn’t have to do anything to earn the kindness, and yet, they were told “someone already paid for it.” It seemed almost unbelievable to the community members that there was no ulterior motive for the kindness and yet it was true: the kindness was rooted in the Truth of who Jesus is and the type of love He showed and continues to show to us.
While considering this parallel along with their eagerness to continue regularly doing Random Acts of Kindness with their youth group, the students added that they’re excited to see what happens as they “share the love of God through kindness.” They mentioned how they think days the youth group goes out for Random Acts of Kindness will be great days to invite their friends who don’t typically go to church or who don’t know God to join them. Some even added that now that they’ve done Random Acts of Kindness with their youth group, they think they may do them with some of their friends on their own one day this summer: once sharing the love of Christ through Random Acts of Kindness was modeled to them, and they were able to follow alongside a leader, they felt encouraged and prepared to go out on their own. With the leadership of parents and volunteers as well as the courage to “go” even though they were nervous, students at Immanuel, Batavia are boldly sharing the love of Christ through simple, many times unseen, acts of kindness.
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