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If you wander down to the Greater Philadelphia Food Bank on the third Saturday of every month, you'll find the warehouse bustling with people sorting jugs of juices, canned soups and vegetables, and huge boxes of bulk pasta. Many of these dedicated volunteers are under 10 years old.

It's not surprising that their parents involve them in this kind of community outreach. According to the Points of Light Foundation, more and more people are realizing that volunteering is the only viable solution to many of this nation's problems. And, as those at this Philadelphia food bank know, volunteering is not just for grown-ups!

As Christians, we want our children to show compassion. Volunteering is an effective way to nurture this trait, for it opens our children's eyes to the needs around them, and helps them learn how to demonstrate Christ's love in practical ways.

Kim Hokkanen was worried that her three children had little empathy for those less fortunate, so she decided to do something about it. Two years ago, she took Kelsey, 8, Jordan, 9, and Kyle, 11, shopping for a Christmas basket for a needy family. Realizing that these people would otherwise have had nothing for Christmas was eye opening for the kids. Now they appreciate their own toys more, and want to help those who have very little.

Ironically, Kim worries that such opportunities are sometimes missed because families are so heavily involved in church activities. She's probably right. Sunday school, youth group, choirs, home groups, and committee work can easily consume all of our time. Building up the body of Christ is vital, but this will do little to influence our culture unless we are also involved outside the church. Whether we like it or not, our churches are becoming increasingly irrelevant to our neighbors. But when we serve our neighbors with love, Christians can help make our communities safe, welcoming places. Not only do we show Christ's love through our actions, our children will then learn that Christianity is not confined to a building with a steeple.

Elizabeth Prinzen was confronted with her own lopsided volunteer habits after hearing the testimony of a missionary serving on an Indian reserve near the town where Elizabeth grew up. Though she had attended a "missionary" denomination church as a child, she had never reached out to the needy people in her own back yard. So in August 2000, she and her husband, Bernie, bundled their eight children, aged 18 months to 16 years, into the van and set out to help run a week-long children's day camp at a native reserve. "Though our kids have always been involved in our church's children's ministries, this was our first time serving outside the church like this," Elizabeth says. "It was a wonderful experience. Even seeing how other people lived was valuable, giving our children a perspective on what God's given us." The chance to pray and serve as a family also drew them closer together.

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