GIVING THANKS TO OURVOLUNTEERS

Every Tuesday, Anna teaches English to new migrants at our local community centre. Her students include refugees, asylum seekers on temporary protection visas and grandmothers who speak English as a second language.

language to learn and much patience is required by both student and teacher. For many of the refugees, learning English helps improve their employment prospects and boosts their self-esteem.Anna is just one of the thousands of volunteers throughout Australia

Praise God for the good work of our volunteers! Remember to say ‘thank you’ to any volunteers you encounter this week.Think about this passage from 1 Corinthians 12:26: “if one member suffers, all suffer together with it; if one member is honoured, all rejoice together with it”.

who give up their time to serve their community. International Volunteers Day is celebrated on 5 December and I see this as an opportunity to celebrate the wonderful generosity of so many people in our world. Some support their local community through soup vans, running blanket drives for the homeless and organising fundraising events for families in need. Others offer assistance to overseas communities living in poverty. Whether it is locally or abroad, their noble service has made a difference to the lives of many.

www.victas.uca.org.au/givingisliving l December 2016 l Image by kmb43xgame via freeimages.com

By Brian Lee