One of our core values at Landmark is simple but powerful: serving others is a choice we make every day. Jesus modeled this kind of life for us, showing that true leadership begins with a heart willing to serve. Colossians 3:23 reminds us, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord.” At its core, serving starts with something even simpler than action, it begins with learning to notice people the way God sees them.
That is part of the spirit behind Serve Week on our campus. Throughout the week, our students step outside their normal routines to serve organizations and ministries in the surrounding community. It is a meaningful reminder that education is not only about knowledge or achievement, but it is also about shaping the kind of hearts our students carry into the world.
Many of our students experience this same perspective through mission trips as well. When students step into new communities, they often return with a deeper awareness of the needs around them and a greater sense of gratitude for what God has given them. Those moments help form a posture of humility and compassion that we hope continues long after the trip ends.
But learning to notice others does not only happen during special weeks or mission experiences. It grows in the ordinary rhythms of daily life, at the dinner table, in the car after practice, or while talking about the day. When families and schools reinforce this habit together, children begin to develop eyes that look outward instead of inward.
Here are a few ways you can encourage this habit at home:
Ask noticing questions. Instead of only asking about assignments or activities, try questions like “Who needed encouragement today?” or “Did you see someone helping someone else?”
Name the quiet acts of service around you. Point out when you see people serving others, a teacher caring for students, a friend helping someone who is struggling, or a neighbor lending a hand.
Serve together in small ways. A note of encouragement, helping someone in need, or supporting a friend going through a hard season can teach children that noticing others should lead to action.
When children grow up in a community where serving others is normal, something beautiful begins to take root. They start to understand that their lives are not just about achievement or activity, but about loving God and caring for the people around them. Philippians 2:4 reminds us, “Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.” When students learn to notice others in this way, they begin to live out the kind of servant leadership our world needs most.
For more information about Serve Week or the mission trips that our students participate in, please reach out to our Campus Pastor, Fred Gilkeson, at [email protected].
