Let your light shine

Hi again from Australia.   I have enjoyed the past month of teaching in the four schools my team goes into.  This month I have been reminded of the importance of shining God’s light when we go into school. 

Often we cannot set up before the lesson because the rooms we teach in are being used.  So we need to be really organised, well prepared and very flexible.  I also think we need to be really patient, friendly and helpful.  When I go into school I am guided by Jesus’ words in Matthew 5:14-16: "You are the light of the world…let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven."  These words remind me of who I need to be when I’m at school.  Although I am often in a hurry and focused on what I want to do, I need to slow down and take the time to say hello and be helpful.  This is not always easy, but I believe that my actions are as important as the words I speak.

I try to take the time to talk to the receptionists in the school and ask how they are.  When I go into a teacher’s classroom, I never use anything without asking permission.   And if I ever see some way that I can help the teacher or school I try to make myself available.  I have spoken to other SRE teachers who take occasional morning teas into the school staff, go in as classroom helpers, help with children who need extra assistance, move furniture, and even look at wedding photos of a recently married teacher.  These small “light shining” acts are important because they bring glory to God and often lead to schools and teachers being more welcoming to us. 

One teacher told me it took him about three years of shining his light before the school made him feel welcome.  Throughout that time he was helpful and generous with his time.  Another SRE teacher always said hello to the classroom teacher who sat in the room while she taught.  Finally one day, the teacher responded with more than a hello.  Now that teacher has become much more supportive and helpful.  Another teacher told me that the classroom teacher who sits in the back of the room, recently told the children to be quiet because she wanted to hear what was being said as it was so interesting. 

May you shine your light and glorify your Father in heaven this week in your groups at school.  Who knows who may be listening and watching your message?  

 

God bless, Kaye

Full Circle

     In 1998, I was a teacher in Bensenville, Illinois. I left teaching to become involved in the ministry that was taking place in Hanover Park and Streamwood, Illinois, which was soon to become Crossroads. In those early days, Crossroads was a para-church neighborhood-focused children's and youth ministry. One of the first students that I met back then was a girl named Leigh-Ann who was going into seventh grade. The Lord used Crossroads in Leigh-Ann's life to point her toward Jesus, and in seventh grade she professed personal faith in him.

(l–r) Matt Armstrong, Sam Barnhart, Leigh-Ann Mihalopoulos

     Fast forward to yesterday: May 17, 2012. At 8:30 a.m. I had a meeting with Leigh-Ann and Sam Barnhart, her pastor. Sam leads a church called "The Anchor" in Bensenville. At our meeting we discussed that Leigh-Ann, who now owns a home in Bensenville, wants to be the Crossroads Kids Club team leader for her church as they would start a club in that community. At 10 a.m., I met with the superintendent of Bensenville and found out that their policies definitely allow for a Crossroads Kids Club to take place. He said that the gym at the school where I used to teach would be available this upcoming school year!
     As I left from that second meeting, I was amazed at how God put all this together. The community—the very school—that I used to serve before leaving for Crossroads was now open to Crossroads coming in there. And this new Crossroads Kids Club location would be led by a Crossroads "girl" who is now all grown up! (The down side to all this is that it does remind me of my age!) For me, this was truly and "Only God" moment. I am excited to see the fruit (second generation fruit) that comes from the new club in Bensenville this fall.

Global Connections

     One of the cool things about the "World Wide Web" is that it is truly global. This week I have exchanged e-mails with a colleague in Australia who has a tremendous heart for serving children in the public schools of her nation: Kaye Chalwell. She found Crossroads Kids Club on the Web. I hope that she becomes a regular contributor to this "School Impact" blog. In the meanwhile, she has written an introduction (below), and you can also visit her blog site at: http://transformingkidsministry.wordpress.com/ 

     Hi, I’m an Australian children’s worker who has just learned about the work of Crossroads Kids Club. As soon as I read what Crossroads was doing I contacted Matt because I thought that my experience in public schools in Australia may be interesting and helpful to Christians working in public schools in the United States. That’s because in most states of Australia, Christians are allowed to go into public schools for 30 minutes every week during school time and teach about their faith.  These non-compulsory Special Religious Education (SRE or Scripture) lessons are one of the ways that Christians are able to share their faith with children who do not attend church. Part of my job is coordinating the SRE lessons in four public schools. Each week our team of six teachers teach about 260 children in thirteen classes. 

     I have always known this is an incredible privilege, and I have compared it with the United States where I thought you did not have such an opportunity. So I was very excited to discover the work of Crossroads Kids Club. I think we have a lot in common. For example, we’re motivated by our love of Jesus, we’re volunteers, the children don’t have to come, we’re using buildings and resources that don’t belong to us and we’re spending time with children who may never have been to church before. 

     Teaching about Jesus in schools is an act of trust. We trust that God will be working in these kids’ lives and that the message we share with them will make a difference. We need to celebrate the moments when we see a difference. This week there were two such moments. First, I met a family whose girls I teach SRE to outside our church as they walked home from school. One of the girls recognised me and called out, “Hello."  I went over and introduced myself to her mum and we started talking. She told me that her girls loved SRE, and she thought that maybe she should bring them to church but was worried they’d be bored. I explained what we do at church and assured her that I was sure the girls would have a good time. How wonderful it was on Sunday to see the family at church for the first time and the girls participating in the children’s ministry. Second, on Friday night we are having a special movie and games night at church. Mostly kids from church are coming, but I have just found out that a boy who comes to SRE is planning to come as well. I am so excited and thrilled to see God at work.  

     I will be praying for your work in schools and ask that you would pray for us in Australia as well.  God bless, Kaye

Principal E-mail

     This week, a pastor from a new Crossroads church sent an e-mail to two principals with whom the church already had a relationship. I think that the message sent is a fine example of how to approach this, so I am re-printing the e-mail from this outreach pastor to the principals and the school district community relations director:

Hello All!

We are delighted to be working together on the upcoming block party! As you know, our church is committed to addressing the needs of our community holistically. We have undertaken many different ways to bring about positive transformation in the neighborhood. Recently, we discovered an organization that helps churches like ours to establish after-school clubs ("Crossroads Kids Club") for kids inside of their schools. We are very excited about this possibility, and we are eager to discuss it with you.

Would you be open to scheduling a brief (30 minutes or less) meeting with us to discuss the possibility of [Church]  sponsoring a Crossroads Kids Club program at [School] & [School] next fall? Crossroads has operated after-school clubs in schools for over a decade, and their specialty is helping local churches lead such clubs in their communities. Matt Armstrong, the director of Crossroads, will join us so that he can answer all your questions about the program. Matt, Pastor __ and myself are available between 2:30 and 4 p.m. on May 1, or any time on May 14. Would you have any time to meet with us during these time frames?

God Answers Prayer!

     One week ago, I wrote to the people on Crossroads prayer update list and asked them to pray for four very specific things related to the informational lunches that we hosted this past week. I am delighted to report that the Lord answered prayer in a way that actually blew away my expectations! Last week, I wrote:

At this moment, we have 11 signed up for Rockford, and 7 signed up for Schaumburg. I would simply like to ask you to pray hard for these four specific things between now and Thursday:

• Please pray for at least three more churches to come to Schaumburg.
• Please pray that all the churches who signed up will show up.
• Pray that the presentations go well and the vision is communicated clearly.
• Pray that at least two churches from each group will sign on for next year.

So, here's how God answered these prayers:

• We prayed for at least three more churches in Schaumburg, and five more registered and two more who didn't register showed up for a total of 14 non-Crossroads churches represented!
• We prayed for all the churches who signed up to show up. Every single person who was registered (and then some!) attended in Schaumburg and in Rockford. We had 28 people in Schaumburg and 18 in Rockford, not counting those from Crossroads who were sharing. 46 people and 100% of them came! That blew me away.
• We prayed for the presentations to go well and for the vision to be clearly communicated. I believe the Lord answered this pray as well. Here is part of an e-mail I received from a pastor in Rockford within 2 hours of the presentation: "I also want you to know that I appreciate the detail and professional quality of your material, web site, and presentation. It builds confidence. We are in partnership with an elementary school, and have made tremendous headway. God has led us and has opened the doors. But, we are not effective at building deeper relationships or getting the gospel to the kids and families and have been trying to figure out that strategy. So far, Crossroads looks like a good next step. I'll process this and I'm sure we will be in touch.”
• The fourth and final specific prayer item was for at least two churches from each group to sign up for next year. In Schaumburg, 11 of the churches indicated interest in taking next steps, and in Rockford five churches indicated this. Again, I was blown away by the Lord’s answer to prayer!

Sharing the vision with
church leaders in Schaumburg

     Now, there is a long way to go from expressing a desire to move forward to actually launching a club in a school, but it certainly appears that there will be at least double the number of clubs we were praying for from each luncheon.
     Having been reminded of how God loves to answer prayers that advance his kingdom purposes this week, I am also reminded that we have an enemy who seeks to stop kingdom advances. So, in this post I want to celebrate God's amazing faithfulness and ask you to pray one thing with me:

     Would you please pray for all barriers to be removed—both inside and outside the church—so that all 16 churches that have expressed interest will open clubs in schools this fall?

You're Invited!

To my friends and ministry colleagues in the Chicago-Milwaukee-Rockford areas:

     As a fellow church leader, I know how important it is to find the right opportunities to engage a church body in the local community for the sake of the gospel. 

     Having been both a public school teacher and a pastor, I can think of few mission fields with as much potential impact as local public schools, but few church leaders that I talk with are aware that the doors of the schools in their community are often wide open. My passion is to help churches reach kids in a local public school with the Word of God, leading them into a life-transforming relationship with Jesus.

     Would reaching your local community through its youth fit with the vision and resources you have established at your church? For over 10 years Crossroads Kids Club has successfully established Bible-based clubs inside of public elementary and middle schools and would love the opportunity to see if this outreach might be a fit for your church. 

     I would like to invite you, along with any other interested members of your congregation or staff team, to join me for a free lunch event designed to help you learn more about the amazing opportunity to share the gospel inside of public schools. Please join me:

• Schaumburg, Illinois: April 11, 2012, noon–1 p.m.
  (Details & registration)
• Rockford, Illinois: April 12, 2012, noon–1 p.m.
  (Details & registration)
• Milwaukee, Wisconsin: May 8, 2012, noon–1 p.m.
  (Details & registration)

     I look forward to meeting you soon!

"Thank you, God, for Crossroads [Kids] Club"

     On Saturday, a woman who has volunteered as a Crossroads Kids Club site director for about eight years handed me three-and-a-half typed pages. At the top of the first page was a title: "God is Working through Crossroads Kids Club." I have to say that receiving a document with this title is pretty energizing because normally the things people share with ministry leaders are all the things that need improvement. As a side note, I think we should stop more often and thank the Lord for what he is doing and celebrate his goodness. One of the things she shared in these pages was that one child had prayed, "Thank you, God, for Crossroads Club." (Hence the title of this post.) Here are just a few more stories:

• E*** attended club for several weeks in September and then one day he came and asked, "Do I have to come to Crossroads today? I want to go to my friend's house to play, and this is the only day I can go." When he learned that each student was going to receive a Bible that particular day, he changed his mind and exclaimed, "We're getting Bibles?! Then I'm staying!" He put down his backpack in the corner, and he stayed. Such hunger for God's Word! E***'s sister and her best friend also came to know Jesus as Savior this year!
  
• In September, a little girl said, "My mom said [that] she'd tell me about God when I got older, so I went on the Internet to find out about God." A few months later, this girl shared that she was very scared because her family regularly watched horror movies. She would go to her room or the basement to escape, but she could still hear the screams from the movies. We gave her a Bible with passages about having peace and overcoming fear highlighted. The next week after giving her this Bible, she came back and reported that her mom was reading the Bible! Since the mother is more proficient in Spanish, we gave her a bilingual edition of the Bible. The mom sent a nice note in appreciation, and the family has stopped watching the horror movies.
  
• God is changing lives. D*** received Christ as his Savior a few months ago, and God is at work. When his friends are goofing around I have noticed how he tries to continue to listen and be respectful. T*** also received Christ as his Savior. He volunteers to pray and is able to answer review questions with proficiency. He commented, "I learned that God is all powerful and there's no one stronger than God."  At this one club, there are eight children who have shown fruit from receiving Christ this school year.