by Staff Writer Derek Hanisch

We were a well-oiled machine. A scoop of chicken-flavored protein. A scoop of vegetables. A scoop of soy. A scoop of rice. Weigh the bag. Seal it. And there you go: one meal packed for a starving family in a third world country.

As I was packing food with Feed My Starving Children, I risked a glance around me. Surrounding me were 600 people who had given their time to serve. It brought joy to my heart to see all of these people who had willingly become servants for a higher cause.

The 600 people in this community were not only giving up their time for a two hour shift to package food for Haiti. This was a 24 hour event. For 24 hours servants in groups of 600 were able to do something great. They were able to be the hands and feet of Christ, putting their faith into action.

What compelled over 5,000 people to unite and work all night to package food for strangers?

When I think of true service, I am brought back to the feeding of the 5,000. Surrounding Jesus, craving to be with Him, were 5,000 men and women and children. After a long day of teaching, the disciples were ready to send the people to go fend for themselves.

After a long walk home I’m sure that many of the people could have found food. But they would have been separated from Jesus. Instead of sending them away, out of His presence, Jesus decided that it was time for a miracle.

Jesus used the divine power given to Him by His Father to serve all of those who were hungry. Jesus became a servant to feed those who needed to be fed.

What hits me the most out of Jesus’ ministry is that he served strangers. It’s part of human nature to serve those you know. If given a choice, I know that my instinct would be to aid those I know instead of a stranger.

Yet Jesus teaches us that every life is valuable, and that we should not give preference on those we know. We must serve everyone, no matter whether we know them. Why? Because stranger or not, they are still a child of God.

Derek Hanisch is unique indeed! Four years ago he fought and overcame cancer, a battle that would make him into the man he is today. Derek is majoring in Social Work while praying that God will use his life experiences to impact others. Feel free to connect with Derek on his new blog at http://wordartificer.blogspot.com.