Mission Athens is a team of Christians working together to share the love of Jesus and serve the world.
Welcome to the Mission Athens Blog
Mission Athens is team of Christians working together to share the love of Jesus and to serve the world. We are supported by the Dollar Club, members of Central Church of Christ in Athens, AL, and fellow Christians from several other churches. Our purpose is to serve those in our community who are most in need. Our work includes helping the homeless, serving underprivileged children, supporting the elderly, and loving those who are lost in our community. Please join us in "being the church" in our town.
"He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.” Jeremiah 17:8
This weekend, people all around the world are celebrating Earth Day by planting trees and flowers and talking about ways we can improve our environment. Most cities and towns will have some type of community event, inviting everyone out to talk about how we can be better stewards of our natural resources.
As Christians, we know that God is the creator of all things in heaven and on Earth, and we believe that not only should we be good stewards of the earth He has given us, but also sowers of seeds in His kingdom, reaching out to those less fortunate and inviting them to share the love of the Lord.
On Friday and Saturday, the Mission Athens team joined forces with the Central Youth Ministry for "Spring Into Action" weekend. During this event, our members worked side by side with our teens to plant flowers, spread mulch, and beautify two different areas in our community, Fifth Avenue Apartments and Houston Court apartments.
A few months ago, the City of Athens Federal Housing Coordinator, Mr. Pippens, came and spoke with our Mission Athens team about ways we can best serve residents in the federal housing areas. The idea for this project during our Spring Into Action weekend was born at that meeting, and many volunteers worked tirelessly to make the weekend a success.
Members at Central Church of Christ donated shrubs, bulbs, plants, and mulch as well as contributing other donations to help our youth have the materials they needed for the project. Additionally, our youth team planned activities and games for the residents to enjoy as we invited members of these communities to come out and get to know us throughout the weekend.
It was a lot of work, but it was also a lot of fun, as we got to know some of our neighbors and rolled up our sleeves together to improve our community.
What a beautiful sight to behold--God's children ages 8 to 80 working together side by side in His kingdom to make our little corner of His earth, Athens, Alabama, just a little bit more beautiful. We thank God for the opportunity He has given us to serve our community, and a huge THANK YOU to all the volunteers who worked so hard to plant seeds of His love in our little town!
"The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because He has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed." Luke 4:18
On Sunday, April 1, the Mission Athens team hosted a guest speaker at Central Church of Christ from the nearby Lincoln Village Ministry in Huntsville, AL. Darren Raby is an old friend of the family at Central, having worked as Central's youth minister several years ago.
These days, Darren and his family are devoted to Lincoln Village Ministry. During his message Sunday night, Darren shared the story of how this ministry has evolved over the past 20 years, sharing both the highs and lows of this journey. Even when faced with obstacles, adversity, and challenges, the ministry continues to grow and thrive, proof that God's presence is with those who are working tirelessly to help the poor, the orphans, the downtrodden, and those "unseen" members of our communities who many choose to ignore. You can learn more about the Lincoln Village Ministry by visiting their website at http://www.lincolnvillageministry.com/.
As the Mission Athens team continues to work to shine a light upon and serve those less fortunate in our community of Athens, AL, it is truly inspirational to hear stories like those of the Lincoln Village Ministry. Over the past 2-3 years, Mission Athens has grown, changed, done many things right and made some mistakes along the way, too. We are learning, searching, seeking and praying that we will continue to do the Lord's work in our community. The Bible implores us as Christians to love the unlovable, to see the unseen, and to elevate the "least of these" by helping them, serving them, and loving them just as Jesus did time and again throughout His life.
Throughout the past few years, our team has helped lots of children, lots of elderly widows, and lots of people who are battling life-threatening illnesses. In most of these cases, it is easy to rally support and assistance. However, we have also helped convicted criminals, people who struggle with addictions, people who have failed relationships, and people who have made a lifetime of really bad choices. These are the types of people most folks cross the street to avoid. But, the cold, hard truth is that each of these people has a soul. Each of these people deserve to be washed in the blood of Jesus, who died for them just as He died for us.
If we, God's children, don't help these unseen, forgotten, poverty-stricken people, who will? Our dilemma is not agreeing to help, it is opening our eyes to see the opportunities all around us. Our battle is not against the will to help--most Christians have lots of good will to help, to write a check, to support a cause. Our battle is against indifference. The indifference that causes each of us to blindly overlook the dozens of people we meet each day who need Jesus.
Our daily lives are consumed with our jobs, our kids, our friends, our families, our Facebook, and our sports teams. Because we only see our small, little worlds, we literally walk right past people at the grocery store, at our kids' schools, and on the street who are desperate for someone to SEE them. We have become a group of people with good intentions who are too wrapped up in our own little lives to SEE the moments God is giving us to reach out our hands and share His love with these precious souls.
The battle is against indifference.
We don't know what exactly the future holds for Mission Athens, but we have faith that God will guide us in this venture. Our prayer is that our efforts will grow in our community, touching more lives and bringing more people to Jesus. We also pray that passion and commitment will grow, and that we will zealously seek out opportunities to share God's love.
At the end of his message, Darren shared the attached video that challenges all of us to see the unseen as God sees them....His precious children who desperately need us to take action and help them. The video says it all.
