We know its a good thing to do good things.
Common sense says that most people who need help like to be helped. As a culture, we love a good charity story: Mother Teresa holding hands with lepers, Angelina Jolie adopting a village of orphans. As a public body, we authorized our government to send 8,153,000,000.00 in aid overseas in the last available fiscal year. Privately, we gave $4,012 per tax-filing-person.
Medically speaking, those who volunteer their time are less likely to suffer from mental health issues. They have lower mortality rates, and report a higher rate of life satisfaction (http://www.nationalservice.gov/pdf/07_0506_hbr.pdf). In other words: the more people help others, the more they enjoy their own lives. You could even say mankind is physiologically wired to help each other out.
And this should surprise none of us. (It seems that every couple of weeks another study proves true something written in Proverbs a few thousand years ago) It's not exactly a revelation that giving of ourselves is a major part of the Christian faith. When the crippled beggar asks Peter for some money in Acts, what does Peter do? Toss him change? I'd feel pretty good about giving the guy a ten-spot. "Super-spiritual people give paper money," I'd say to myself. Nope, Peter heals the guy. Then he sends him off to use his new-found legs.
A half-dozen or so spots remain for the May 16th Feed My Starving Children service trip. I want those spots filled by the Youth Group. Not so you can lower your mortality rates, or your average instances of mental illness. I want to see you there because its a good thing to do good things.
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