Blue Umbrella Official Summer 2017 issue | Page 3

HOW'S YOUR HEART? WRITTEN BY: REBEKAH V. Wh at did you do t h is su m m er ? That seems like a big question to think about when a summer can hold so many different activities and memories. About a month ago, AOA sent out a survey asking not only the students, but also the faculty, different questions on what they usually do in the summer. The questions asked what type of things they usually do, such as sports, camps, or church activities. Another question was whether or not you are involved in any service projects in your community. A total of 37 responses rolled in, and it was exciting to see all the different answers to the interesting questions asked. The most tricky, but also most important question of the survey was, ?What was the biggest impact that you see in giving of yourself to help others?? A lot of people can read this question differently and get confused by it, but the creative answers to this question were amazing! Some of the answers were ?They are getting to know Christ more and more as we help them? and ?The chance to change their lives and possibly give them new found hope.? " and i f you spend yoursel v es i n beh al f of th e h ungry and sati sf y th e needs of th e oppressed, th en your l i gh t w i l l ri se i n th e dark ness, and your ni gh t w i l l become l i k e th e noonday." Isaiah 58;10b. It seems that all of the responses were tied together by three words: love, hope, and obedience. One of the responses that really hit the nail on the head was, ?The biggest impact would be how you bless those that you help. There are many impacts though, including showing Jesus to those that you help, making Jesus happy, and it also makes you happy.? Just as Isaiah 58:10b says, ?and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday.? It is our job as Christians to rise up and spread the Word of Jesus to the lost parts of the world through serving and loving. It was amazing reading all the unique, Christ-centered responses sent in. Thank you for all who participated.