Author:	Payton Gunhus
	Grade:	Senior
	School:	Seattle Christian High School
	Mascot:	Warriors
	League:	Nisqually
	Classification:	1A

"How We Serve"

The word service to me is a way in which people go out of their way to help those in need. This process could be as big as going on a mission trip across the world, or simply donating out of one’s home. I feel that service is most effective when a group of people come together selflessly to work as a team and perform a specific task. I see Seattle Christian as that group.

Seattle Christian does many events and projects to serve throughout each school year, but there is one week in the year where service is huge. At the end of March, going into April, we have this week called InterSCession. InterSCession is where the entire school takes a week off of school work, and goes out with different groups to serve around the world and overall, serve God. Seattle Christian spreads out from downtown Seattle, to downtown Paris. We have groups at the Los Angeles Dream Center handing out food and praying for the homeless, or going to Guatemala to work with the kids. Seattle Christian does not take InterSCession as just a break from school, but rather gets out into the world to serve.

Last year, for my Junior year of InterSCession, I went with a group to volunteer for a nearby company in Federal Way called World Vision. World Vision works with families, schools, and different people in need all around the world. Throughout the week, we helped them clean up their warehouse, we packed boxes full of school supplies, and we served them as best as we could so that they could serve others. This experience for me was remarkable. I was overjoyed by the amount of help that we provided. It really allowed me to see what kind of world we live in and how much help is needed, so I felt very blessed to have this opportunity. This kind of trip, even though it was small, made me more appreciative of Seattle Christian and the InterSCession week we have to serve others, and ultimately, further God’s kingdom.

I talked with a student and a teacher about InterSCession and wanted to get their thoughts on the week. First I spoke with my Spanish teacher, Mrs. Pitts, who talked about how InterSCession is a great way to allow students and teachers to become relational outside of school. She said that when teachers connect with students, and vice versa, it shows in the classroom because they have built a stronger relationship. On the service side, the concept of serving for Mrs. Pitts has changed. She said that in Guatemala they used to do tasks and build shelters but have come to understand that just listening to the people and having relationship with them serves just as well if not better. Mrs. Pitts always takes a group of kids with her to Guatemala, and while she states that “working with a group of women who were in poverty and abusive situations, and learning how to sew with them and praying with them was very powerful,” as an overall take-away, Mrs. Pitts said that “serving God is less about tasks and things but more about people and processes.”

Secondly, I spoke with a senior student named Jackson. Jackson shared that what he loved most about InterSCession over the past 4 years was that it “really opened [his] eyes to the things that are going on in our world that [he] didn’t know about.” For example, when Jackson went to the Los Angeles Dream Center, he gave a pair of socks to a man, who instantly started crying. The man was very gracious. Jackson thought this was a cool experience because it was just one small thing that you don’t realize is big, but makes a great deal to people like him.

InterSCession is just one example of the different ways that Seattle Christian serves. Going out into the community or even at home, we strive to help as much as we can. Seattle Christian loves to put others before themselves but ultimately serve for the Lord. As I look back on InterSCession, I will always remember freshman year when I helped build a paintball course in the pouring rain, or junior year when I packed boxes with a group of guys to get sent out to schools all over the world. These weeks were special and ones that I will never forget.