Flipside is currently finishing out a 6-week adventure called Summer Hangouts. Normally, during the year, there are Growth Groups (aka Bible Studies) that meet and are broken down according to age, life stage, etc. But with the summer season and everyone being in and out on vacation and with kids being out of school, it gets to be challenging to keep an intense Bible study going.
So for the summer, we opted to try offering various service opportunities. For instance, one group was doing a Bible study for women at a recovery center. Another was going out and handing out food and hanging out with the homeless in Ontario. Another was helping to distribute food at a local food bank. I helped lead what is called The Closet, which basically gives out free clothing once a month on a first-come, first-served basis. We've been doing a lot of folding clothes, figuring out what size and gender they are, and I've been able to get to know a few people from our church. It's really easy to get into the routine of seeing certain people on Sundays as a "hi-bye" friend, so it's nice to get a little bit deeper. I love people. :)
And Aaron got to go help out with our version of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. The city of Rancho Cucamonga has a list of several homes that have code violations and are facing legal action if they don't fix the problems. Some of these people are disabled, or elderly, or just don't have the financial resources to do simple repairs themselves. I'm sure it's a combination of all of the above that really gets them into that place. Whatever the case may be, it's been cool to be able to help out in that way.
We are trying to find the balance as a couple, as a family... as far as how much time we spend on ourselves and how much time we spend with our family and how much time we spend giving to others. It's difficult, and we're learning, but it's good to have a place like this where we'll be able to look back and see how things have changed over time.
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