Awesome Outreach Ideas
Ways Christian Teens Can Make a Difference
Kelli Mahoney

Christians are called to reach out to the world they live in. Volunteering some of your time to outreach activities can be very rewarding both for you and the people you help. Sometimes actions speak louder than words when you are trying to witness to people. Participating in outreach activities can help show the world around you Christ’s love. Here are some outreach activities you can get started in your youth group:

Nursing Home Ministry
People in nursing homes tend to be lonely and disconnected from the world. You can contact various nursing homes in your area to see what types of activities you can do with the residents there. You can get your group together to read stories, write letters, just talk, put on skits, and more.
Homeless Ministry
There are so many homeless people roaming the streets. Whether you live in a small, rural town or a big city, there are always things your youth group can do to help out the homeless. You can contact a local homeless shelter to see what you can do to participate.
Tutoring
You don’t have to be a genius to help out young kids with their homework.
Some kids just don’t get the attention or help they need. You can contact social services in your area to see what they are doing in certain neighborhoods for kids. Work with the neighborhood centers to set up tutoring in low-income neighborhoods.
Craft Donation
Are there some students in your youth group that like to sew, knit, paint, etc. There are programs that knit hats and scarves for the needy, sick, or even military troops overseas.
There are also organizations that need blankets and clothing. See if your fellow craft-minded teens would like to get involved.
Christmas Tree Delivery
Sometimes families cannot afford a tree or they cannot transport trees on their own. Your youth group can get together to deliver Christmas trees to local families.
Turkey Delivery
See if you can get families in your church to donate turkeys or money to buy turkeys and then offer to deliver them to needy families. Just be sure if you are delivering items to dangerous areas that you go with a leader, or even ask for police support. You always want to be safe.
Missions Meals
Missions are an integral part of spreading Christianity around the world. While you may hear a lot about missions giving in main services, it does not mean your youth group cannot do something to help missionaries. You can set up a buffet night where your group cooks foods from different countries to support missionaries from those countries. Then you can sell tickets for people to come eat the food from that country, donating the money to those missionaries.
Paint the Town Clean
Volunteer to cover graffiti, paint the playground, murals at schools, etc. If you see an area that needs some work, you can contact an official there to see if there is something you can do about it. Contact your police or public works department to see about cleaning up playgrounds, painting over graffiti, etc. Talk to you elementary schools to check into painting a mural. Make your town more colorful and clean. People will notice your efforts.
Reading Program
Little kids love when people read to them. Pre-schoolers will crawl in your lap and just eat it up. It also helps to promote literacy. Check with local pre-schools, neighborhood centers, and libraries to see if there is a time your youth group can come in to read to the children. Your group can read both Christian and Non-Christian books and act out skits to entertain the kids.
Service Day
You can set up a service outreach group at your church for Service Days. On those days you can help a specific population like seniors, veterans, single moms, etc. You can cook, clean, do the shopping, etc. for those people who need it. Have people sign up for services or contact members of the church to help out.
While all of these ideas are excellent outreach opportunities, there are plenty more out there. If your church is doing an outreach activity you want to share, e-mail it to your Christian Teens Guide. I’ll put them in an article to share your ideas with other youth groups.

From: www.christianteens.about.com web site. February 2016.

The above article, “Awesome Outreach Ideas” was written by Kelli Mahoney. The article was excerpted from www.christianteens.com.
The material is copyrighted and should not be reprinted under any other name or author. However, this material may be freely used for personal study or research purposes.
This article may not be written by an Apostolic author, but it contains many excellent principles and concepts that can be adapted to most churches. As the old saying goes, “Eat the meat. Throw away the bones.”