Park Cities Presbyterian Church (PCA)

Turning a holiday on its head

Youth take break to serve

By Mary Haberkorn

Published May 1, 2010 in Witness

Spring break is defined as one of those holidays where the busy and bedraggled find solace in maintaining seasonal bouts of personal pampering. I know that I’ve sought that mecca multiple times in my life and have always appreciated the relaxation and self-rejuvenation that typically applies. However, there is something to be said in regard to a spring break that gets turned on its head. Despite how many sun-splashed hours of self-fulfillment one experiences, there’s always that nagging question in the back of one’s mind: Could this have been greater?

Most of us are familiar with Jim Elliot, the missionary whose desire to serve Christ led to his death. He once declared that, “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.”

Spring break can be one of those holidays devoted to the breakdown (all about taking) or building (all about giving) of character, especially for our youth. You may ask a teenager, “What do picture for yourself when you think of spring break?” If you ask the 34 students from PCPC who attended a five-day service project in Austin, you may hear a response that rings of the truth Jim Elliot wrote.

On March 12–16, 19 middle school and 15 high school students traveled to our state capital and gave their service, joy, and time to others. We spent our first morning with an organization called Community New Start, where our youth group played various games in a poverty-stricken neighborhood. The children from this complex were adored and loved as our students reached out to them and exhibited the gospel through play and conversation. One PCPC eighth grader was overwhelmed with joy in reuniting with another boy he had met the year before. “It was cool to talk with him again and hear how his life had been. Last year we really talked about God, so we picked up right where we had left off.” After hot dogs and hugs our students grabbed shovels and dug gardens for the community. I’ll never forget their faces as they stepped back to observe their work. To me, it looked like the beginning of God-inspired rejuvenation.

Our trip was packed with moments like these. As a group, we attended Church Under the Bridge, a church targeting Austin’s homeless population. It is located just under an I-35 overpass. Our young people dispersed among this crowd and met real-life stories of rescue and hope. There was even a game of Hacky Sack that formed between our boys and their new comrades! When we piled back into the car to head for lunch there was an earnest sense of understanding and thankfulness. “We are blessed to have what we have and to live where we live,” I heard a voice say from the back.

The rest of the trip was incredible. From refreshing jumps into Hamilton Pool to hilarious assembly lines in the Austin Food Bank, the PCPC youth group grew in their service and love for the Lord. We spent a night singing together at Mount Bonnell, overlooking the lights of the city below. Praise and worship resonated throughout: “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45). ”Go and do likewise.” (Luke 10:37) Now how’s that for a spring break?