Christian Service and Childrens Welfare - Essay Example

? I was pleased to work at a Children’s Welfare Institute as a part of my service project. The Children’s Welfare Institute is a place where childrencan go to be protected and cared for when they cannot be in their homes. Most of the children were there because their parents were working and they did not have the money or access to pre-school. As a result, many of the children were hungry for attention and really enjoyed having me around. The Children’s Welfare Institute plays a huge roll in the social and emotional development of the children that come here. Some of them attend with their brothers and sisters. This is a place where they can play together in an organized way with supervision by adults. Lessons in getting along, playing fair and using respectful language is all in a day’s work. Without the Children’s Welfare Institute, many of these children would be home playing on the streets in an unsupervised setting or simply watching endless hours of television until their parents came home to watch them. It is a special place because it teaches children good social skills and values while allowing them to safely have fun. My duties at the Children’s Welfare Institute were centered on interacting with the children. I was assigned to organize them into groups for games and activities. Sometimes these activities involved taking kids to a nearby park or some other location to have free time. I needed to count all of the kids and make sure I returned to the Children’s Welfare Institute safely with all of the children. Sometimes this was had to do because all they wanted to do was run around while I counted. I soon learned to call them by name. Doing this makes them feel special and lets them know I care about them. My favorite part of the service was organizing sports activities. I was often in charge of organizing the kids into football and basketball teams. This is not always an easy thing to do, especially when there are so many more kids than adults. Many of the kids wanted to play video games all of the time. Some days I would play with them, but I think it is best to run around and be active playing real games not video games. That is why I worked so hard to organize the sports activities. I also worked on the sports activities because I love to play them. I learned that when you involve children in doing the things you love to do you can really have a positive effect on them. I can see that children often do not listen to what you tell them to do. They are too involved in their activities and their own lives to listen to an adult. But children really watch what you do. If you speak rudely, they will speak rudely to you as well as other people they meet. I liked organizing the sports for the children because I believe it was one way I could show them I cared for them and I wanted to show them some fun things to do. I wanted them to see that sports can be more fun than video games. One of the children I will remember most was Maya. She always looked so sad. On my first day she would not talk to me. By the end of my service, she spoke to me every day. Some days she would not stop talking! Before my service ended, she said she was glad I cam to work at the Children’s Welfare Institute and that she hoped I would come back to visit. It made me feel very good. All of the children were great, but Maya was special because I felt like she really needed someone to look up to. Being away from her parents was scary for her and I feel like I made her life a little bit happier. The one thing I wished I could have done at the Children’s Welfare Institute was to connect with more children the way I connected with Maya. I realize that this was not possible, but the feeling of helping a child makes you want to go out and do even more things to help other children. One quote from the Bible that makes me think about my service experience is when Jesus said in Matthew 19:14, “…Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for such is the kingdom of heaven.” This reminds me that children have a special place in heaven and that they are in constant need of care. Jesus knew this. He made time for little children and we should too. He loved them with a perfect love. He did this because He knows that little children need lots of love so they can feel safe and secure. Another quote from the Bible that fits with my service experience is found in I Corinthians 13:11 where Paul states, “When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.” This scripture is about growing and maturing spiritually, but it applies to children as well. Kids need time to grow up in a safe, fun way so they can be happy adults. I feel that I was able to provide this for many of the children at the Children’s Welfare Institute. Seeing scriptures come to life through my service was a rewarding experience. This experience has caused me to think about my future career. I do not want to work at a place like the Children’s Welfare Society for a full time job. But I think I would like to work with children. Maybe I will consider being a teacher or a person that runs a business selling children’s toys and clothing. I have learned that taking care of children is hard work but it is important work to do. I never thought about doing it as a career before I did this service project. I know now that one of the best things children can have from an adult is lots of love and a good example of living a fun, Christian life. If I could figure out a way that would provide me with the chance to support myself, pay bills and live a life while serving children and their families, I would be a very happy person. I think that this service experience has really changed me. I now know that making lots of money is not the first priority I should look for in a job. Money is important, but it will not make me happy if the work I do does not help children to be happy. Read More