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October 25, 2024 | A Note From Clint

The Pay-it-Forward Life

Paying it forward is a choice each of us gets to make in countless ways each day.

Frank connected with Matthew 25 after retiring at a fairly young age. He was searching for purpose and meaning in his life after a fulfilling career. Now that work wasn’t his routine, what would feed his soul, connect him with others and make the world a better place? Eventually, he found his way to the tool library. There, he helps homeowners move forward with challenging projects, works with a team of other caring people and puts his faith in action.

Volunteers making Good Meals To Go for the Cultivate Hope Corner StoreJasmine (name changed) is a single mom who works hard to make ends meet around the home. She wanted a place where she could give back to others and develop her cooking skills. She volunteers as a cook at the cafe and always brings a big smile and abundant joy to everything she does.

Cedar River Academy students work with Kendal, Matthew 25’s education leader, to grow food in their school garden. When harvest time comes, they pack up some of what they’ve grown to take home. Other times, they bring lettuce and a variety of fresh produce to Groundswell Cafe or the Corner Store to help feed those who are hungry. They seem to walk with an extra spring in their step and a few inches taller as they proudly share their bounty.

Volunteers working in the greenhouse on Matthew 25's Urban Farm

At the core of Matthew 25’s work is engaging a diversity of people in the pay-it-forward lifestyle. In a casual tour of Matthew 25, you can see pay-it-forward results everywhere. At the Cafe, one of our frequent visitors and supporters decides to drop $300 in the pay-it-forward fund to make up for the shortfall in contributions this week. He is helped by one of our volunteers working the cash register. Sitting at the table in the Cafe is a group of four, including two who recently paid for a new walk-in cooler.

Walk over to the Urban Farm and a whole crew of volunteers are mowing, harvesting and pulling weeds. At the Corner Store, several backyard gardeners come in weekly to bring freshly harvested produce to be placed in the pay-it-forward section of the grocery store. The energy and goodwill is contagious. People who receive pay-it-forward food know that it’s a gift from other community members.

One of the accusations leveled at Matthew 25 has sometimes been that we live in a world with our head in the clouds. We don’t see how bad and angry the world is or all the problems. That could be true. We do tend to have a fairly optimistic view of things and often see possibilities for coming together as a community, even around what others see as problems.

For us, this is what a faithful life looks like. Over and over, Jesus and every great faith leader in the world teach us that our destinies are all woven together. When one person is hurting or one person causes harm to the world, all of creation groans and longs for shalom or peace. Mother Theresa used to talk about how the big challenges the planet faces only get solved one person at a time.

Imagine what your household, your block, your neighborhood or even Cedar Rapids would look like if the majority of people woke up with an attitude that each day is a gift and opportunity to pay-it-forward by bringing a little joy to others and working towards the common good. We would all live significantly different lives.

Let’s not tell ourselves it isn’t possible. Life is hard. Divisions are growing. Challenges are on the rise. Yes, some of that may be true. But, paying it forward is a choice each of us gets to make in countless ways each day. At Matthew 25, we are working every day to put systems into place that make it simple to pay it forward to others. We love this team of people that is joining us in choosing this lifestyle. May we work together to become like leaven in bread, causing the whole community to rise.

 

Youth holding up freshly picked carrots
Youth raking landscaping rocks into place beneath a fence