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20th Anniversary – CSM Impact
Jason Porterfield was listening to the chapel speaker at Messiah College, when it hit him—God is calling him to the city. The ironic thing? This speaker was an Amish farmer. Not only that! God had plucked that farmer off the farm and dropped him into the inner-city to serve Him and His people.
Jason listened as the speaker described how more and more Christians were fleeing the city for the comforts of suburbia. His heart ached for the people being left behind and he thought to himself, “Lord, if You can use an Amish guy, You can use me.”
As he filed out of the chapel, Jason’s friend ran up to him and informed him she enlisted him to serve on a team to Camden, NJ (one of the worst-off cities in the US). If that wasn’t affirmation to his calling—he didn’t know what was!
Jason served alongside Messiah College’s Service Teams throughout his time at school. Those trips included time in Philadelphia with CSM. Jason loved seeing and serving with such relational ministries. The Lord created in him a heart and passion for the urban poor during those trips.
After college, Jason served as a City Host with CSM first in Philadelphia and later on in Los Angeles. He appreciated the more intensive time in the city for multiple reasons. Jason was able to view the ministry sites as case studies—he learned what to do and what not to do! The poor were no longer just a socio-economic group—they had names, faces and stories. The time in the city (when no groups were in serving) allowed him the time to delve into the Bible and read it from the perspective of an urban dweller. Lastly, Jason was able to discern the calling he had been given—to live in the slums of Asia amongst the urban poor.
During his time in Los Angeles, Jason had the great opportunity to introduce serving groups to the city’s homeless. He loved opening the door for CSM’s groups to personally interact with homeless individuals and to get to know them on a deeper level.
One afternoon, Jason had just finished dividing the group into smaller teams and handed out money for them to invite a new friend for a meal. The groups began to spread out looking for someone to bless (and be blessed by!)
Nina, a woman living on the city streets, came running up to one of the smaller groups and said, “Excuse me… excuse me! Are you the ones that have come to listen to us?”
Jason and his group learned that day that the worst poverty that exists in this world is the poverty of loneliness. And it’s a poverty that we can simply erase with loving words and a listening ear.
For those of you looking to serve with CSM, or any organization, Jason has some great advice for you! First, come as learners. View this trip as a vision trip, not a mission trip. Sure you’ll serve, you’ll help, but allow God to speak. Learn how God is at work in the city.
Secondly, in the wise words of Mother Theresa, “Find your Calcutta.” While you’re in the city, pray about how you can apply this experience at home. Missions is a 24/7 experience—it doesn’t end, even if the trip does. View yourself and your group as missionaries, visiting the city to gain a creative vision for your hometown.
Jason is currently preparing, along with his wife Laura, to live amongst and love on the urban poor in an Asian Muslim country. We invite you to be praying for them and their ministry. We thank our Father for Jason’s example to follow the Lord wherever He calls and for his passion to love the oppressed of this world.
