School Impact

Missional Numbers

2012-03-08T08:00:00.000-08:00

This afternoon I am presenting to a group of youth pastors. In preparation I was looking at some numbers that I found astounding. 33% of children in my home state (Illinois) live in single parent homes. 3.5% of kids in Illinois are being raised by a foster parent or a grandparent, and nationwide 1 out of 44 kids has a parent in prison. Many absentee parents.
On top of this, 48.1% of public school children in Illinois in 2011 came from low income households. Many poor children.

Finally, across the nation, only 55% of all children are non-Hispanic white children. In Illinois, nearly 25% of the children are Latino, and in Chicagoland, more than 79% of the Latinos are of Mexican origin. Multi-ethnic and foreign-born children.

So what?

I believe that throughout Scripture, God reveals that he has a special compassion for those who are vulnerable: children, the poor, orphans, widows, foreigners. It turns out that when we go into a public school and love on the kids there, we are ministering to kids who very likely fall into multiple categories of vulnerability. What I mean to say is that they could be orphans, poor, and foreign-born all at the same time. God is passionate about sharing his love with the children in our public schools—all of them—but I believe he calls his Church to take a special interest in the most vulnerable people in a society. In our society, these people are in our public schools.
Now consider this: according to Barna research, children between the ages of 5–13 are more than FIVE TIMES as likely to respond to the gospel as people at any age from 5 years on up! On top of this, in Mexico, about 5% of the population is evangelical. In the U.S., 28% of Latinos (most of whom are Mexican) are evangelicals! What this means that the gospel is making huge progress among Latino immigrants across the United States. So, to reach out to children in our schools (and Latino children in particular) is to reach out to a group that is extremely likely to respond to the gospel and that is also close to the heart of God.Why would we not want to do that?

The Spirit of Unity

2012-03-06T08:00:00.000-08:00

"Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all" (Ephesians 4:3–6, NIV).

It is amazing how quickly division creeps into ministry. In fact, I believe that division is one of Satan's most effective tools for derailing the work of the gospel. In Jesus' prayer in John 17, he indicates that when his followers are united the world will know who Jesus is (verses 23 and 24). In other words, our unity is our primary evangelistic method. Jesus said, "By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another" (John 13:35, NIV). Our love and our unity are what reveals Jesus to the world.
The somewhat counter-intuitive thing is that sometimes we have to fight for unity. When someone is a part of your ministry team and they are pushing an agenda counter to the calling of the group, I suggest that the group first pray and seek to understand if this person's concerns are prophetic and from the Lord. If they are not, then it is important for the team leader to confront the person who is bringing disunity. Of course, this must be done with gentleness and love, but disunity cannot be tolerated or the evangelistic effectiveness of the ministry will be undermined.

What strategies have you used to deal with disunity?

Best Practices in Mentoring Youth

2012-03-03T08:00:00.000-08:00

     On Tuesday I had a great opportunity to participate in a workshop that our township government hosted: “Best Practices in Youth Mentoring.” The presenter was a Ph.D. in social work who shared some highlights from research about mentoring.
     A few things she shared stood out to me. First, the measurable outcomes of school-based mentoring programs do not carry over from one school year to the next with one exception: reduced absenteeism. Two positive attitudes (the belief that an adult cares and the desire to attend college) also carried over. Beyond that, all the benefits of mentoring were erased by three months into a new school year. This is a staggering finding for those involved in school-based mentoring that only takes place during the school year. The implication is that a mentoring relationship needs to continue year round for it to be effective. As well, in communities with failing schools, she shared that sometimes parents are less-than-enthusiastic about a school-based mentoring program because they are skeptical of anything closely associated with the school.
     A second very significant point regards the age at which a mentoring relationship is most helpful to young people. It turns out that this is different for boys and girls. The key time frame for boys is during their elementary school years. For girls, the optimal time for a mentoring relationship is actually early adolescence (middle school).
     And a final point that struck me as very significant is that if a mentoring relationship lasts fewer than six months, it can actually harm the child rather than help. So, fostering longer-term relationships that last through the summer months as well as the school year is key.
      Mentoring is becoming increasingly popular, and many schools are very interested in having caring adults mentor youth. This is a positive development as people change best in the context of caring and accepting relationships. Also, mentoring youth in a school is a great way for us to show local schools that we care about them and the kids at the school. However, I think it is important that we pay attention to what research is showing are best practices, and I found this workshop particularly helpful in that regard.

Are you involved in mentoring youth or children? What does it look like in your context?

Proclaiming the Good News in Word AND Deed

2012-03-01T08:00:00.000-08:00

Monday, I met with a friend of mine from Nigeria. He is involved with a ministry to African church leaders and he tries to help them see that the gospel compels them to care for practical needs. He told me about church leaders who see street kids and have no desire to help because they do not view caring for these kids as central to the gospel. "Our job is to preach the gospel," is their attitude. He and I share a concern that this is not healthy—the gospel we preach leads us to practical acts of compassion and care for those around us.

I shared with my friend that I have found that in the United States, we have gone to the opposite extreme. Most church leaders seem much more interested in serving the community and meeting "practical" needs than they do in proclaiming the hope of Jesus. I believe that just as faith and works go together, so also proclamation of God's truth must accompany service in his name. Romans 10:14–15 says: "How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: 'How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!'" (NIV). So, let's bring Good News to people with our actions and our words! We need to care about the practical needs of people around us and bear verbal witness for Jesus. In this way, we are living like Jesus who healed the sick and preached good news.

RELATIONAL MINISTRY: Take The Lid Off!

2012-02-28T08:00:00.000-08:00

This is a re-post of some thoughts from a wonderful servant of God and a gifted children's ministry leader, Wanda Parker. It was originally published on her blog site: kidtrekasp.wordpress.com and is re-posted here with her permission.

    I was in the bedroom creating a seminar on the “Love One Another” passages in the Bible when my youngest daughter, who was then in kindergarten, came into the bedroom. Dana was fixing herself lunch so she could go to her afternoon kindergarten class and asked me to open the peanut butter jar. My study had so absorbed me that I did not pay attention to her. Each time she asked, I automatically answered, “Yes, honey,” or “Sure, in just a minute." Finally, exasperated with her mother’s lack of concern for her needs, Dana took the peanut butter jar and whacked me on the back with it. She got my attention!
     Though it hurt, I could not get angry, for the Lord impressed on my heart at the instant of contact with the jar that my study of love had not made me a loving, caring mother, attentive to the needs of my kids. During the last week of His life on earth Jesus gave His disciples a new commandment: “A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. All men will know that you are My disciples if you love one another.” John 13:34-35.
     We can do a lot of talking about love. We can study the Scriptures. We can intellectually know the difference between agape, philio, and eros love; however, everything is useless if it does not come alive within and through us. The way we treat the kids and our attitude toward them will speak louder than any words we utter.
     Relational ministry is taking the lid off the peanut butter jar the first time we are asked. In doing so, we tell the kid he is valued; he is significant enough to interrupt what we are doing to meet his need. As we do this, the kid learns that Jesus loves him unconditionally. We may be the kid’s only link to Jesus.

Bible Stories and Storying

2012-02-25T08:00:00.000-08:00

Thursday I had the privilege of having lunch with Michael Novelli. Michael is the author of the book, Shaped by the Story. One of the things we talked about is the importance of connecting the stories of the Bible to the overarching story of God. On a yellow pad, Michael wrote "creation" on the left side, and "new creation" on the right side. Each event in the Bible (and in our lives) either defines the beginning or the new beginning or describes life in between. I was reminded of the importance of helping kids find their place in God's big story instead of simply teaching them random, isolated stories from the Bible. As Michael said, "Context is king."
I am very pleased to say that Michael Novelli is going to be leading a workshop on Bible Storying at Crossroads on March 17, 2012. He is the first of four presenters in a series of training workshops called "Spring Training." The workshops are open to all churches regardless of their affiliation (or not) with Crossroads. Learn more and register today by visiting: www.SpringTrainingWorkshops.com.

Applause, Please!

2012-02-23T08:00:00.000-08:00

     On Tuesday, I was visiting our newest Crossroads Kids Club site, and the pastor (who happens to be the site leader) did something that I thought was really cool. During the game time, he assigned points to the students for winning or placing in one game or another. There was nothing exceptional about that, but at the end of the club time, he told the children that instead of giving out prizes they were going to applaud for each person based on their final point tally.
     As it turned out, I was playing and had received the fewest points of anyone: 1,000. So, he said something to the effect of, "Matt has earned 1,000 points. Our top point earner has 12,000 (or whatever the total was, which I am forgetting). In light of this, let's all cheer for Matt at a 1,000-point level." Everyone clapped polite "golf claps" for me. He went through each child, and we cheered for each one. By the time we got to the top earner, there was lots of enthusiasm and excitement.
     I think this idea worked so well because everyone loves to be cheered on and applauded. Every child gets the opportunity to be affirmed and applauded. The students are showing appreciation for everyone, not just those who finished first, and it was fun! In the end, it was so rewarding that the kids didn't complain at all about not receiving a tangible prize. So, next time you think you need to give out a prize, try applause—it's a plausible alternative. (Sorry, couldn't resist the pun.)

Making Sense of Your School District's Policies

2012-02-21T10:00:00.000-08:00

Recently, I have been reviewing policies from hundreds of school districts in Illinois regarding their policies and procedures that govern "Community Use of School Facilities." If your church wants to host a Christian club inside of your local public school, one of the first things you will want to learn is what the school district's established policies and procedures are. There are three principal ways to uncover these documents:

Look at the school district's web site. Often they post information about facility rental or facility use on their web site.
Contact the person in charge of buildings and grounds and ask them about rental of the facilities by outside groups.
Submit a Freedom of Information Act request for the policies and procedures.

Below is a sample policy statement (from a real district), which is very typical of what you will find:

In case you can't read the policy at this size, you can also download it here. Now the question is how to interpret this policy. The first paragraph basically means that this school district is open to renting out their facilities to outside groups. This is good. The second paragraph tells you that it may cost you something unless you are "student and school-related" in which case, the building use is free. This is very typical, and how your church will be viewed by your district depends on their administrative procedures. (Hopefully, they have clear administrative procedures because if they don't then it is at the whim of the administration as to how they treat groups.)
Very often school district procedure statements outline categories of rental groups. Below are the rental classifications established by the school district whose policies are above (download a copy here):

In this example, I think that a Crossroads Kids Club should be placed into Classification I. The rationale is that it is a children's program that is serving the students of this district during a time when a custodian is normally on duty. If this district wants to be difficult, they could attempt to say that a church would fit under Classification IV ("Non-profit organizations based within District No. 20."). However, it is a difficult case to make since the program in question is clearly for the children in the school. Some policies are better than these, but these are quite typical of what you will find out there. They do leave some things up to interpretation and that is yet another reason why you need to not only know the facts but also make friends with the school leaders.

Need help deciphering your local district's policies and procedures? Contact me at matt@crossroadskidsclub.com. I would love to help you figure out what they mean!

Creating Culture

2012-02-19T10:00:00.000-08:00

     There are so many tips and tricks that can help make a Crossroads Kids Club (or any children's ministry program) run smoothly. I have shared some of my ideas here, and I read other blogs for these kinds of ideas. However, recently I realized that there is something far more important than good organization, solid planning, and all the tips and tricks in the world—the organizational/ministry culture you create.
     More specifically, your leadership team is creating a culture based upon how they relate to one another, to you (the team leader), and to the children. If this culture is characterized by unity and love, things tend to go well. If the culture is that everyone does their own thing and volunteers for their own reasons, your ministry will certainly not be as effective as it otherwise might be. So, how do you get everyone on the same page?
     I believe that you can shape the culture of your team by clearly identifying and communicating your values (unity and love, for example). When the team shares a set of common core values, the culture will be as healthy as the values you have chosen. Sometimes you will have leaders that do not buy in to the values you are pursuing. When this happens, it is okay to "fire" a volunteer...even if they have many wonderful qualities. You need people on your team who will create the kind of culture you are seeking to establish. You need the team to be on the same page.

What are some ways that you communicate your values to your team?

Why Is Children's Evangelism Taboo?

2012-02-16T10:00:00.000-08:00

     I don't mean this to be offensive, but I realize that it may be. Over the last year or so that I have been working with churches to start gospel-centered after-school clubs in public schools I have found that church children's ministry staff are very often not interested in evangelism. I have met some wonderful children's ministry leaders who love Jesus and love kids. However, in the majority of cases this love has been directed toward the children already in their churches rather than "unreached" children in the community.
    Last week, I met with a leader at Awana Clubs (where Crossroads has its office) who shares a passion for children's evangelism. He told me that he had examined the schedule of workshops from top children's ministry conferences (like CPC and Orange) one year and discovered that out of hundreds of workshops, fewer than five had to do with evangelism. This is a sad state of affairs for the church in North America when we take into consideration that about 85% of all people who come to Christ do so by the age of 14 and that about 50–70% of children raised in church walk away from the church. So, if we lose half or more of the kids inside the church and we fail to reach children outside of our churches, what does that mean for the future of the church in our nation?
     I think that one of the reasons we don't see more children's evangelism from churches is that children's pastors and directors tend to be strong nurturers. This is excellent and Christ-like. Jesus mourned like a mother hen over Jerusalem and welcomed little children with open arms. Clearly, he was a nurturer. However, Jesus also had a strong sense of mission and a prophetic spirit that could correct and rebuke ("Get behind me, Satan!"). The point is that I think we need to cultivate more balance between a strong sense of mission (coupled with a prophetic voice) and healthy nurturing. Kids need both. Churches need both. And if we want to be advancing the kingdom of God, we need to see both the nurturing and missional aspects of children's ministry held up in high esteem.

What other reasons do you see that children's ministries tend to become very inwardly focused?

Amazing Grace on a Day of Love

2012-02-14T10:00:00.001-08:00

     Happy Valentine's Day! On this day on which we celebrate love, I want to talk about one aspect or demonstration of love—grace. Showing grace to someone is an act of love. It is putting them ahead of ourselves.
     This past Sunday, the sermon at my church was on grace. One thing that was memorable to me from that message is the fact that there are three parts to grace: forgetting, remembering, and giving another chance.
     First of all, to extend grace means that we forget the bad thing(s) that a person did. We may not truly forget them, but we can choose not to focus on those things or bring them up ("Love keeps no record of wrong."). Second, we remember the good thing(s) a person did. We celebrate the positive and dwell on those actions. Finally, grace involves giving another chance to the person has messed up.
     God's grace toward me is one of the most amazing aspects of his love. He chooses to take away my sin and keeps no record of my failures. He chooses instead to remember the price he paid for me and that he has adopted me as his beloved son. He focuses on the times when I have loved and served him well and remembers those things. And when I mess up (which is all the time), he may be disappointed, but he always gives me an opportunity to be restored and to serve him again. My prayer is that I will learn to be more like my Father—to forget, to remember, and to give another chance—not just today but every day.

How has someone showed grace to you? How can you show more grace to the children in your ministry?

Reflections from a New Club

2012-02-11T10:00:00.000-08:00

Today I want to share with you some thoughts from a church leader (the pastor's wife, in fact) at a brand new Crossroads Kids Club. She wrote this after they had met only three times. I think it is awesome how God is working through their church at this school so quickly. I hope it encourages you!

     "We just completed our third exciting week with this special group of children at our Crossroads Kids Club. I can see how God is touching their little hearts as we share his Word, his love and his joy. The first week we began with 13 children. The second week 26 children attended, and on our third week 30 children came to Club! As the weeks go by, we can see how the children are beginning to open up. We didn't know what to expect at first, but we have realized that as we demonstrate unconditional love and build relationships with the kids, they become extremely receptive to God's Word. Today (2/2/12) when I arrived, I was so touched when some of the smiling children ran up to me and gave me a big hug. Seeing the team from our church come back every week to be with them, they've begun to trust us and respond to our love and acceptance. One little girl came up and hugged me and said, 'I told my mommy I got God in my heart and she told me, "I'm so proud of you!"' Just seeing the beautiful look of hope in her eyes and hearing the excitement in her voice almost brought tears to my eyes. This girl alone is worth all of our effort!
     In our small groups last week, we had the opportunity to ask the children to accept Jesus as their Savior and four out of the seven children wanted to do that! (The other three already knew Jesus.) I am truly amazed at how quickly these children believe and receive! What a privilege to bring these little ones into God's family. There is absolutely nothing more satisfying than knowing that you have impacted a child's life for eternity.
     We also have the opportunity to invite the parents personally to come to our church and also to send flyers home with the children. As you build relationships with the children, they want to see you again, learn more about God and visit you at your church. One child told me, 'Can I please have your flyer again because I lost it and I want to go to your church.' As the children connect with you, they bring the parents along with them! The children themselves are great evangelists. Growing from 13 children our first week to 26 our second week removes all doubt that these children know how to spread the Word about Jesus!
     I believe that we, as a church, have a great responsibility to go and share the gospel with children. Children are not only our future generation, but they are important to God (Matthew 19:14). We don't know how long this wide open door of opportunity [to go into the schools] will remain open to us. Therefore, we as a church, must act NOW while it is still open. Crossroads is that bridge that connects our church to the public school so we can impact these children with the gospel of Jesus. I challenge you to be the church that steps out with Jesus to say, 'Let the little children come to ME!'"

Tip of the Week: "You've Got Mail!"

2012-02-09T10:00:00.000-08:00

     As the price of a first-class letter stamp has just increased to 45 cents, people are wondering aloud about the future of the U.S. Postal Service. Is it still relevant in this age of digital communication. I believe that nothing digital will ever fully replace the experience of receiving a piece of mail from a friend.
     So I want to offer a very simple tip this week: Send mail to your kids! In this era of junk mail, digital magazines, and e-bills, I believe that receiving a piece of mail is particularly meaningful to a child. My 10-year-old daughter recently received a postcard from a church we had visited a few weeks ago. The card was for her birthday last month and promised her a special birthday present if she brought the card in. Although it wasn't even a personal note, the very fact that she had received mail addressed to her was a highlight in her day. (And, of course, she was curious about what sort of gift they might give her.) This was a brilliant way that this church connected with the kids in their children's ministry.
     One of the great things about sending a note to a child is that it is personal and public at the same time. What I mean is that you can tell the child how very glad you are that s/he is in your group and express what you appreciate about them. At the same time, you can be nearly certain that the parents will be reading it as well. This is good because it is not as secretive as online communication (or even phone communication) can be—meaning it gives you more protection from false accusations and it can help you build a relationship with the parents as well. Here's a bonus tip: If you want to be a real hero, enclose a sheet of stickers or a bookmark or photo in with your note. This is sure to be a major highlight for the child and something that is a talking point in that child's family. Finally, sending notes is a particularly effective way to build rapport with new children and to make them feel that they are special and belong. So, bite the bullet, pay the 45 cents, and send that note. Every child loves to hear the words, "You've got mail!"

Equal Means Equal

2012-02-07T10:30:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I came across an outstanding article that summarizes some important court cases that are relevant to churches working in and with public schools. It is published by the Liberty Counsel, and it is available by clicking this link: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/55599141/LibertyCounsel.pdf It addresses the issues of rental fees, use of space and other school resources, the distribution of literature by religious groups in schools, and the participation of teachers in a religious after school activity. I found it to be very helpful, and I hope you do as well.

Tip of the Week: Managing Transitions

2012-02-02T10:00:00.000-08:00

In this video Matt shares five tips for managing transitions between activities at a Crossroads Kids Club. These tips can be adapted for use in a variety of children's ministry contexts. The tips are:

Have a routine.
Give "lead time."
Use natural break points.
Employ sensory cues.
Make transitions fun.

"Getting Religion Right in Public Schools"

2012-01-31T10:00:00.000-08:00

A friend of mine who teaches in a public high school recently loaned me his December 2011 copy of Kappan Magazine, which is a magazine covering issues related to schooling in the United States. The theme of this particular issue was Religion and the Public Schools, and it featured several very useful articles for public educators attempting to understand the proper role of religion in schools. One of the most helpful articles was "Getting Religion Right in Public Schools" by Charles C. Haynes. Haynes outlines two different "failed models" that schools have employed (and that some still use)—both of which are unconstitutional.

The first model is what he calls the "sacred public school." In this paradigm, a school district favors one particular form of religious expression (historically, some general form of Protestant Christian faith). This model does not work because it does not respect the rights of free exercise of religion of minority groups in a pluralistic society, and it put the state in a position of endorsing a particular religious viewpoint. Both of these consequences lead to this being unconstitutional. Giving respect and fair treatment to people of other faith backgrounds (or none) guarantees our own continued right to express our faith. Haynes also describes the opposite—but equally unconstitutional model—the "naked public school." In this model, schools strip themselves of all religious expression and become completely secular. This is problematic for a number of reasons. Chief among them is that students are not agents of the state and have a constitutionally-protected right to the free exercise of their religion. Students have every right to carry a Bible or wear a Christian t-shirt (so long as it otherwise fits with the school's dress code), for example. Students are also free to express their religious convictions at such times and places that are appropriate to the situation and do not infringe upon the rights of others. What's more, to say that religious thought is not important in understanding history and culture is a gross understatement. For a school to deprive students the opportunity to learn about religion would be to mis-educate them.
The bottom line of Haynes's article is that there is a new model emerging—"a civil school" model—that is religiously neutral. In this model schools are "places where religion and religious conviction are treated with fairness and respect." The bottom line is that "Public schools uphold the First Amendment when they protect the religious liberty rights of students of all faiths or none." I couldn't agree more.

Tip of the Week: Spread Out

2012-01-20T16:54:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, I had the privilege of attending the launch of a new Crossroads Kids Club in Elgin, Illinois. This club is led by my friends from Maranatha Church. After the club ended and I was at home I reflected on my experience at the school with them. The club had gone very well—exceptionally well for a first day, in fact.
There are a few factors to their initial success (beside the obvious one that the Lord is blessing them). One key factor is that they are a great team who really shows a lot of love for one another and that love spills over to the kids. It is fun just watching how they care for each other and support one another. This definitely sets the tone for the club and helped make it go smoothly on the first day.

However, the tip I want to share here is the way that they used proximity to the children in order to maximize connections and learning. I have included a photo in this post of the large group time. (There were only 13 students as this was the first day, so it is "large" group time.) Notice how the staff is spread out and forming a semi-circle behind the group of children. To my knowledge they did not do this with any kind of plan in mind. They just seemed to do it intuitively, and it worked well. The kids listened attentively and participated actively.

School District Mapping

2012-01-19T10:00:00.000-08:00

The last several weeks I have been working on a large project that involves researching the policies of local school districts regarding the use of their facilities by community organizations (such as local churches). Often I can learn their policies by looking at their web sites. Very often board policies and administrative procedures are posted there, and you just have to know where to look. Other times though, I have needed to submit a request for the policies and procedures under the Freedom of Information Act. My goal is to gather data on all of the school districts in the six county (Illinois) portion of Chicagoland. There are hundreds of districts in this area, and so this is quite a formidable project. When done, I hope to color code each school district on county maps.

Green means that the district is open to outside groups using their space and that this use is either free or very low cost.
Blue means that the district is open to rentals, but the fees are substantial.
Yellow indicates that the district may or may not be open. The policies are somewhat ambiguous and need to be tested.
Red signals that the district is closed to use by outside groups or severely restricts the time that space is available. For example, they may allow groups to use space only on the weekends.

So far, I have been pleased to learn that only about 3% of the districts are red. The vast majority (probably 80%) are green or blue meaning that they are open to use by outside groups. My plan is to use this information to look for churches that are located in "green districts" (i.e., the ones that are most open) and to let them know that they should have an easy time starting a Kids Club inside of their local schools.

Curious about your district's policies? I'd love to help you research them. Post a comment or shoot me an e-mail, and I will see what I can do.

The Art of Bible Storying

2012-01-14T10:00:00.000-08:00


Michael Novelli

This week I finished reading a fabulous book by Michael Novelli called Shaped by the Story: Helping Students Encounter God in a New Way. My intention is not to write a review of the book here but only to introduce one concept that struck me as having profound implications for the way we teach the Bible to children (or anyone for that matter). That concept is that we as learners want to understand God's story and locate ourselves in his story. This stands in contrast to telling our own stories and then making a place for God in our stories. Often our vocabulary belies whose story we are in. When we say things about giving God the first place in our life or "putting him on the throne" of our life, we are actually saying that we are making room for God in our story. Instead, we need to understand that God is unveiling a cosmic story of creation-fall-redemption-renewal and we get to play a part in his story, which is a way better story than any that I could tell in any case! The Bible storying method that Michael describes focuses on discovering God's story and participating in that story instead of finding tidy application points for our lives as they are.
After reading this book, I am very pleased to say that Michael Novelli is going to be leading a workshop on Bible Storying at Crossroads on March 17, 2012. He is the first of four presenters in a series of training workshops called "Spring Training." The workshops are open to all churches regardless of their affiliation (or not) with Crossroads. Learn more and register today by visiting: www.SpringTrainingWorkshops.com.

Learn more about Storying by watching this video:

A Church Leader's Field Guide to Public School Ministry, Part 2

2012-01-12T10:00:00.000-08:00

Two days ago, I began writing about the vision I have for a book on public school ministry. Today I want to share how I envision the book being organized. There will be four main sections, and each will have at least a couple of chapters. The sections are as follows:

TheMovement: Reaching, Raising, and Releasing aGeneration with the Power to Transform the World

Chapter 1:

The Unprecedented Problems andOpportunities Facing Today’s Children

Chapter 2:

The Hope of the 21^stCentury Church: The 4/14 Window

Chapter 3:

Compulsory Educationand the 4/14 Window Contextualized

TheMoment: Doors and Hearts Are Open Like Never Before

Chapter 4:

ConstitutionalPrinciples and The Legal Pendulum

Chapter 5:

Our Schools Are in Crisis

TheMethod: Make Friends with School Leaders

Chapter 6:

Community Schools: A Paradigm for Education Reform

Chapter 7:

Finding Common Ground

Chapter 8:

Moving Beyond through a Project-Orientation to Relationships

TheMission: Share Jesus with Students and FamilieS

Chapter 9:

The Transformational Power of Relationships

Chapter 10:

Jesus-Centered Justice

Conclusion:What are we looking for? What Are You Waiting For?

A Church Leader's Field Guide to Public School Ministry, Part 1

2012-01-10T10:00:00.000-08:00

I am thinking about writing a book. Actually, I am beyond just thinking about it. I have moved on to the planning phase. I have sketched out a chapter outline and am looking for feedback. So, I thought I would share a little of what I am thinking here on this blog site in the hopes that some people will give me constructive feedback (either in the comments or in person or by e-mail). I will post my chapter outline in a future post, but today I want to explain the reasons that I want to write this book.
First, I have seen how open the public schools are, and the public schools are where the kids are at. Second, 85% of people in the U.S. who come to Christ make their commitment to him before age 15. So, the best hope for the future of the church is to reach kids, and the kids are in the schools. It also seems to me that most churches either don't think it's possible to reach into a public school (and so they don't try) or they don't see the benefit or they try but get shut down because they approached the school in a wrong way.

For all these reasons I hope to write a sort of "field guide" to public school ministry. I have served as both a public school teacher and a pastor. I have also been involved with leading after school clubs in schools for over a decade. By virtue of these experiences, God has allowed me to see things from some different angles of vision. I believe this perspective can be helpful in furthering his kingdom purposes.

What benefits and what challenges do you see in a church trying to reach out to children inside of public schools?

Has your church ever tried to work with a local school? How did it go?

Discipleship

2012-01-07T10:00:00.000-08:00

I had an interesting conversation with Wanda Parker this week. Wanda leads a ministry called KidTrek (http://www.kidtrek.org/). Wanda has led church-based children's ministries and after-school programs for many years in a variety of contexts. She is an amazing leader who zeroes in on results. She would urge church leaders to consider what we want children to be like when they are 40 years old and then to work from there—what will it take now for us to disciple our kids so that they will be what we want them to be when they are 40?

One key takeaway from my conversation with Wanda about discipling kids is that it takes many connections with adults in a church for the child to really feel connected to the church and to grow a strong faith. Building healthy adult-child relationships with your average churched child is very challenging, but I think that there are a couple of cases that are particularly challenging:

Pastor's kids. Having grown up as a pastor's kid and also having been a pastor and parent, I think it can be especially difficult for the other adults in the church to feel that they can speak into the lives of the pastor's kids. This is sad because it can lead the pastor's own children to feel like outsiders in their home church.
Neighborhood kids. When a leader from your church's school-based ministry brings a child into your church—a child who is attending without his or her parents—it can be very difficult to connect that child in meaningful ways with other adults in the church. With your "average" kid, the parents have friends in the church, and the child naturally gets to know the peers of their parents (at least at some level). But how do we connect with the child with no parents at the church?

What does your church do to connect the adults with the children in meaningful and healthy relationships?

Challenges Facing Today's Kids

2012-01-05T10:00:00.000-08:00

This week I had to opportunity to share a cup of Starbucks and talk with a new friend who is a missiologist and a leader in the 4/14 Window Movement. We talked about a number of things, but what I want to share here are three challenges facing today's kids that are macro issues affecting children in many nations around the world.

Identity formation driven by peers and media. Parents are struggling to pass along their values to their children. Kids are orienting themselves to their peers and finding their identity in belonging to a certain peer group or tribe. This is hugely problematic for a number of reasons not the least of which is that the peer group does not love the child unconditionally as a parent would, nor does the peer group have the wisdom the child needs to grow into maturity.
Dysfunctionality of families. Families are splintered. In some places this has happened through war or AIDS. In other places it has occurred through divorce, but in many corners of the globe families are torn apart and children are experiencing less stability in their home environments.
Economic disenfranchisement. From young people rioting in the Middle East to the low youth employment rate in the U.S., young people growing up today feel frustrated and unable to achieve the material ideals they dreamed of. July 2011 saw the lowest youth employment rate in the U.S. since records have been kept (which started back in 1948).

Clearly, this is not an exhaustive list. I am curious to know:

Do you see evidence of these issues affecting children in your community?
What would you add to this list of macro-challenges facing kids?

Tip of the Week: Bathroom Breaks

2012-01-03T10:00:00.000-08:00

One frequent issue that arises in Crossroads Kids Club's programs is that students need to go to the bathroom, and it seems like they always remember that the need to go at the worst possible times—like during a transition or right when large group is starting. Here are a few tips to help manage this issue:

Make it your policy that students should use the bathroom before arriving at club.
Have a designated time to go to the bathroom during club and take the whole group at one time.
Have each small group take a turn going to the bathroom during small group time.

In short, if you can designate the appropriate times for kids to use the bathroom (e.g., before club and at a designated bathroom break time), it will cut down dramatically on the times that they interrupt the flow of the club schedule by asking to use the bathroom.
When you have a regular time scheduled and a student asks to use the bathroom at a different time, you can reply with something like, "We are going in ten minutes. Can you wait ten minutes or is it an emergency?" Many times, students will say that they can wait. This reinforces the idea of the set times to go and discourages other students from asking. If a student seems to regularly have "emergencies" and says that they can't wait then I would recommend talking with the parent(s) to see if there is a medical reason for this as this is entirely possible. However, in the absence of a medical condition, it could be a ploy for attention, or the child could be asking to go to the bathroom simply because they are not engaged with the club activities (i.e., out of boredom). In this latter case, you have a deeper issue than managing bathroom breaks. You need to ratchet up the excitement of what you are doing in general.

A Look Back at God's Faithfulness

2011-12-31T10:00:00.000-08:00

Dear Friends,

As 2011 draws to a close, I want to take this opportunity to say THANK YOU for your prayers and financial support of Crossroads Kids Club in the year behind us. It has been quite an exciting! Not only have we shifted our paradigm to work exclusively through local churches, but we are in more schools than last year and have three more set to open next month!
     Just over 12 months ago, I was personally in a very different place than I am today. In October 2010, I was the pastor of New Hope Community (which we had launched in 2007) and director of Crossroads, which was working with schools in two towns and one school district. I was directly responsible for each Club and also for the church. Through the summer of 2010, I had a nagging sense that something wasn't right. Looking back, I would call it a "holy discontent," which was leading me toward something new. In October of 2010, I traveled to Uganda with two good friends. While far from home (and on some long plane rides), I was able to be very honest with my friends and listen to their encouragement and counsel. When I returned home I knew that I needed to step down as pastor of the church. My gifts and personality didn't suggest a great fit for pastoral ministry, and that had become very clear to me. In realizing this, I also thought it was time for me to move on from leading Crossroads since the two ministries were so intimately connected. Little did I know that the Lord had something else in store for Crossroads, for New Hope, and for me!
     In November 2010, I began some conversations with friends in leadership at Awana Clubs. We spoke about the possibility of working together to take the Crossroads Kids Club model and share it with churches nationwide--to equip and empower local churches to share the gospel with children inside the public schools in their communities. These conversations with Awana and the Crossroads Board continued through February 2011. Finally, in March, I stepped down from leading the church, became the full time executive director of Crossroads, moved in to the Awana Clubs headquarters in Streamwood, and began pursuing the vision of helping local churches reach kids in their own communities.
     Since then, I gained some key knowledge that has helped Crossroads grow in 2011 and will, God willing, bring us forward in 2012. One of the things that I worked on was to learn what similar ministry was taking place around the nation. I wanted to know if anyone else was connecting churches to schools to reach children with the Good News of Jesus.
     I found two national organizations working inside of schools. One of these, although it works through churches, does not share the gospel with kids or even engage in spiritual conversations. The other does not work through churches but embraces a para-church model of ministry. I also found a couple of local ministries that were engaging churches with schools for evangelism but only on a regional level.
     I learned through my research that there are four key commitments in our new ministry paradigm that make Crossroads Kids Club unique:

We are committed to the local church.
We are committed to public schools.
We are committed to evangelism.
And we are committed to serving churches across the nation.

     In the spring of this past year, we began trying to establish credibility with local churches by developing relationships with senior pastors, youth pastors and children's pastors. To that end, we hosted a couple of informational luncheons. At the first one (held in Milwaukee), we had an amazing diversity of churches represented: three kinds of Lutherans, a KJV(1611)-only Baptist church, a United Methodist congregation, and some from an Evangelical Free church and an Assembly of God, among others.
     In fact, this is something else I discovered this year: God has people in all kinds of places! The original eight churches we are working with are from really diverse church traditions. What I have discovered is that the unifying themes are: a high view of Scripture plus a commitment to evangelism and neighborhood outreach. Outside of those things though, we have liturgical, charismatic, mainline, non-denominational, small and medium churches engaged. We have also seen that both urban and suburban churches are interested.
     I have learned so many other things this year as we have moved in this direction. I have become more and more convinced of the importance of what we are doing and of God's call to do exactly that. There are so many things I could share, but I want to close by talking about the local ministry in Streamwood and Hanover Park. After I left New Hope Community, the church faced some dark times, but God raised up new leadership for New Hope! We have a new pastor, and the church has moved to a new location in Streamwood. Currently, my role at the church is as the volunteer children's ministry director and an elder. New Hope is growing and is the sponsoring church of four different Crossroads Kids Clubs in our community. This past November, nearly 30 children in our church's Crossroads Kids Club ministry professed faith in Jesus! Seeing changed lives at the local level is really what the big-picture vision is about. Now we want to see these results grow and spread across this nation.
    Through your faithful prayer and financial support of Crossroads Jesus has changed these children's lives! Not only that, but we are on track to see the impact of sharing the gospel inside of public schools exponentially expand the number of children that will be reached in the years ahead. So, thank you for your partnership in the gospel! I am truly grateful.

With great expectancy of amazing things from God in the year ahead and with sincere gratitude for his faithfulness in 2011,

Matt

Think Spring...Training!

2011-12-29T10:00:00.000-08:00

Today I am pleased to announce "Spring Training" presented by Crossroads Kids Club. We all know that training our children’s and youth ministry team members is vitally important, and most all of us feel the pinch of shrinking budgets. This spring, Crossroads Kids Club is pleased to offer an opportunity to access high-quality, live training for your leaders at a very low cost. We are calling it “Spring Training,” and it is a series of affordably-priced workshops led by high-caliber leaders in children’s and youth ministry. Each session takes place from 9 a.m. to noon on a Saturday during the spring of 2012. Check it out at www.SpringTrainingWorkshops.com! (Personally, I'm just happy to think about spring at this point in the Chicago winter!)

Tip of the Week: Manners Matter

2011-12-27T10:00:00.000-08:00

Most Crossroads Kids Club programs offer the children a snack when they first arrive. The practical reality is that the children have been in school all day, and by the time they arrive at Crossroads for an after school club, they are hungry. A friend of mine, Joe Maydak, who volunteers at a Crossroads club has a good habit when he distributes the snacks. Each child is encouraged to ask for a snack with a "please" and to say "thank you" once they receive it. It is such a simple thing that Joe is teaching them to do, but it is so important that the kids learn good manners. Saying "please" and "thank you" will only help these students as they grow older and need to communicate with adults in various contexts (like job interviews or college interviews). So, this week's tip is to find ways to incorporate manners into your ministry. Many kids are not learning even basic manners at home, so this is an area in which we can serve children well and also enhance the positive culture of the club.

Attachment, Curriculum and... Power Steering

2011-12-24T10:00:00.000-08:00

I am reading a book called Hold on to Your Kids: Why Parents Matter More Than Peers by Gordon Neufeld and Gabor Mate. The book is not written from a Christian viewpoint but has been very helpful. It talks about how all warm-blooded creatures copy and learn from their parents until they are ready to be adults, but our contemporary Western society has undermined the role of parents in nurturing their children by becoming extremely peer-oriented. Instead of taking our cues from parents and "elders" we focus on peers. Even as adults we become very peer-oriented—so much so that we don't even realize it.
One of the things that stands out to me in this book is the fact that there is great power that lies in a healthy attachment relationship between a parent and child. The authors compare this to power steering. The person (or group) to which our children is attached has the power to steer their lives. The question is which way will the person with this power turn the child. Parents generally realize that they have some responsibility to nurture and guide their children, and when a child has a healthy attachment to their parent or another responsible, caring adult, they will respond to the guidance of that person. That person can easily influence the direction of the child's life. When a child become peer-oriented, the child resists the parents' attempts to steer their life and instead responds to the peer group's demands for conformity. The peer group has control of the steering wheel.

I have noticed that much attention in Kids' Ministry circles is devoted to curriculum. This is not altogether unimportant. Curriculum helps to define the course or direction in which we want a child or group of children to go. However, I think that without the power to influence (or steer) a child, the best curriculum in the world will not accomplish much. And what leads to the power steering effect? Healthy attachment (i.e., a healthy child-adult relationship). In fact, the end goal of parenting and children's ministry is relational—to connect the children to Jesus. So, our whole ministry must be focused on building relationships with children, or it will have little impact no matter how impressive our curriculum!

Tip of the Week: Manage Transitions

2011-12-22T10:00:00.000-08:00

     Transitioning from one activity to the next seems to be one of the most challenging aspects of leading a successful Crossroads Kids Club program. It seems like things can come unglued rapidly at these times of moving from large group to small group and from small group to games. I want to offer three simple tips that may help manage these transition times.
     First, it is very important to be explicitly clear on what the students need to do and when. For example, saying, "Everyone go to your small group." is not nearly as effective as saying, "I would like the members of the blue group to raise your hands. Great! Blue group: When I say, 'Go!' I want you to follow Jennifer to the corner by the side door and to sit down and get to work as quickly and quietly as you can. Where's the red group? Raise your hands. Great! Red group: When I say, 'Go!" I want you to follow Jeff to the corner by the window (point to corner) and to sit down and get to work as quickly as you can. In fact, let's see which team can get to their place and get started the quickest. Ready? Go!" In the second example, you will notice that I took a lot of time to explain the transition. I made sure that each student knew they were involved in this transition by asking them to raise their hands. I gave them a clear direction about who to follow, where to go, and what to do when they got there. I also told them when they should start making this transition and even introduced an element of fun (competing against the other team to see who could get started first) into the transition.
     Second tip: Give the students some "lead time." What I mean by this is to let them know that a transition is coming. If you are playing games and large group is coming up, you might say, "We're going to play one more game for about five minutes, and then it will be time to get into large group."

The third tip is simply to publish a schedule of your club activities on a poster on the wall. You can refer to it each week in large group so that the children understand the agenda for each club session. Giving the students an awareness of the various activities in advance orients them to what is ahead and helps them to transition. A schedule can be like a map that helps to guide the group toward a destination.

What are some other ways that you successfully manage transitions in your club or ministry?

God Is in Control

2011-12-20T10:00:00.000-08:00

     God is in control. This is a basic truth of the Christian faith, and yet I so easily forget it. I don't forget it mentally. I just don't always live like I believe it. Over the past couple of weeks, I had been extremely frustrated by a situation in a particular school district. There is a church that has seven leaders ready and waiting to start a Crossroads Kids Club in their community. We were rejected by one principal and then shut out by another one as well. I was particularly frustrated with the situation because this is a school district that has never rejected a Crossroads Kids Club in ten years, and we have six clubs already meeting in six schools in this same district. The point is that it was not a matter of district policy or of not having a church ready to lead. The whole situation just didn't make sense to me.
     God is closing these doors because he has something else for you, I assured the associate pastor who was leading the Crossroads team. The trouble was that I really only half believed that. (Mostly I was just saying it to sound more spiritual.) Then we got a meeting with the principal of a third school in the neighborhood last Thursday. Walking in to that meeting I was not sure what to expect.
     Almost immediately, the principal shared that she was a follower of Jesus. She told us what her home church was, and in the course of the conversation she shared that she had grown up as a missionary kid. In any case, she was absolutely delighted to work with the church and to have a Crossroads Kids Club start there. We could tell that she had a genuine love and concern for the students in her building, and she shared some of the incredible obstacles the children routinely face—parents in jail, parents being deported, etc. The bottom line: God reminded me that he really is in control. This church and I had our plans, but God had other plans. He closed the door to two other schools to lead us to this one where we were not thinking of going. I left that meeting so encouraged and I am rejoicing that his ways are so much better than ours!

Tip of the Week: Manage your Space in Small Group

2011-12-17T10:00:00.000-08:00

Small group time is a key component of Crossroads Kids Club. During this time, caring adult leaders have the opportunity to really get to know the students at the club. Small group time can also prove to be a big distraction for many students. The reason is that there are several groups meeting simultaneously in one space (usually a gym, classroom or multi-purpose room). For some reason, what is happening in the other groups always seems more interesting to some students than the conversation in their own group. Furthermore, some students thrive on negative attention and will intentionally try to attract the attention of students in another group by waving, making faces, jumping up and down or whatever they can do.

One of the most important ways a small group leader can minimize these distractions is by managing their physical space well. First, you want the students to be sitting close to you. This allows them to speak more quietly, which makes the overall volume of the room less. It also keeps them more focused on you and what you are communicating. One of the best ways to accomplish this closeness is to define the space by using an object on the floor. For example, in some gyms tumbling mats are available. In other cases, you might bring a picnic blanket or some carpet pieces. Any of these methods will help to define the space and clearly communicate where the children should be sitting—close to you. Second, you want the children to face you and not the other groups. A great way to accomplish this is to sit with your back to a corner of the room. Then when the children are facing you, they see two walls as a backdrop instead of other small groups.

Keep your students' attention by managing your space well.

Alignment: Open Schools Matched with Interested Churches

2011-12-15T10:00:00.000-08:00

It is the time of year when many of us reflect on the past 12 months and plan for what might be in store during the new year ahead. Looking back on 2011, I am very excited and encouraged about what God has accomplished. Crossroads Kids Club expanded from working in just one school district in Illinois to working (through local churches) in three districts in two states with another two districts on the horizon for January. Throughout this process of beginning to grow beyond our home town we have been talking with both church leaders and school leaders. One thing I have observed is that there is frequently a geographic disconnect between the open schools and the interested churches. What I mean is this: Sometimes I find a school district that is wide open to having a Christian club in their building(s), and I cannot find a church in that community interested in taking advantage of that opportunity. Other times (and more frequently), I find a church that is interested, but its local schools require quite a bit of coaxing in order to open their doors.
Having noticed this, I have a new plan for 2012, which involves being more strategic in selecting which churches to approach.
Yesterday, I found a map of all the school districts in the State of Illinois. This will allow Crossroads to systematically investigate the policies of each district regarding the use of space by community groups. My plan is for us to assign a color code to each district on the map based upon its probable openness to a faith-based club. Most likely we will use green for those that are most open, yellow for those that are probably open but may have some hurdles, red for those that would be the most challenging, and gray for those where the policies are ambiguous. After doing this, we can then look at what churches are meeting in the "green districts" and then we can let them know that their local schools should be wide open. Hopefully, this plan will allow us to gain momentum a bit quicker in 2012. Also, my hope is that once we get established in the open districts, it will be harder for the "yellow districts" and even the "red districts" to stop churches from starting clubs when all the neighboring districts have set the precedent.

A Crossroads Kids Club Christmas Lesson Plan

2011-12-13T10:00:00.000-08:00

I just finished putting together a Christmas lesson plan for our Crossroads Kids Clubs to use. It is still in draft form (i.e., It is plain vanilla text.) and is definitely not based on an original idea. Nonetheless I will share it with you in case someone finds a use for it.

“J” Is for Jesus
A Christmas Lesson

Background

Materials Needed:
For Large Group:

(Optional) One copy of the book The Legend of the Candy Cane by Lori Walburg (ISBN: 978-0310212478)
(Optional) Lyrics and music for some Christmas songs

For Each Small Group:

A Bible
A dictionary
“Beaded Legend of The Candy Cane Ornament Craft Kit,” available at www.orientaltrading.com ($2.29/dozen currently), one craft per student
Candy canes, one per student

Main Idea:
Christmas is about Jesus, and Jesus came to save us and to lead us.

Scriptural Basis:

Matthew 1:19–21
John 10:14
Matthew 7:24–27
Hebrews 4:15
Isaiah 53:4–5
John 3:16
Matthew 2:1–11
Luke 2:1–21

Session Schedule

Snack, Check In & Welcome (10 Minutes)

Opening Game(s) (30 Minutes)
Choose your game(s) from the Crossroads Kids Club games handbook.

Large Group Lesson (20–30 Minutes)

Open the lesson with these ice breaker questions:

What plans do you have for celebrating Christmas?
What gift(s) are you hoping to receive for Christmas?

Explain that Christmas is about remembering that Jesus was born. God took on human flesh and was born as a baby. He grew into a boy and then a man. One of the titles used for Jesus is Immanuel, which means “God is with us.” Say: This is great news! In fact, after Jesus was born, an angel appeared to some shepherds and said: “I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people” (Luke 2:10b NIV). Today we are going to look at a common piece of Christmas candy—the candy cane—and see why the fact that Jesus came to earth is such great news.
Object Lesson: The Candy Cane
- Explain that you will need some helpers who can look up and read some Bible verses as you talk about how the candy cane reminds us of the great news that Jesus came to earth. The readers should look up the passages in advance and be ready to read. The passages are:
- The Shape:
- The Hardness:
- The Colors:
- The Flavor:

(Optional) Read The Legend of the Candy Cane.
Pray with the students and dismiss them to small groups.

Small Group Discussion (20–30 Minutes)

Explain that a lot of people are confused about the real meaning of Christmas. Ask a student to look up what the dictionary says Christmas is about. The dictionary will say something about Christmas being an annual celebration when Christians remember Jesus’ birth.
Say: Well, the dictionary was a little bit helpful in understanding what Christmas is all about, but where could we look to really learn more? (The Bible)
Read the Christmas story from Luke 2:1–21. You might use some dramatic voices or even have students read parts of it. Ask questions for understanding and comprehension.
Review the candy cane object lesson to explain why it is so important that Jesus was born.
Tell the students that they will be making a Christmas ornament to remind them about the meaning of the candy cane. Distribute the Candy Cane ornament craft kits and make this craft together with the students.
Take the students’ prayer requests and pray with them.
Before dismissing the students, give each one a real candy cane.

How to Check References

2011-12-10T10:00:00.000-08:00

In addition to my full-time work with Crossroads Kids Club, I have recently assumed the responsibility of the Children's Ministry Director at the local church I attend. In that capacity, I have had to come up with a staff screening process in order to be sure that the adults working with our kids are safe people. We are using a 3-part screening process, which includes an application, reference checks and some criminal database checks. I asked my friend and long-time investigator, Tom Hampson, for some help in knowing what to ask references. I thought his insights were very keen, and so I wanted to share with you what he said about checking the references of your staff.

Insights from Tom Hampson:

The first thing you need to do for each reference is to qualify them.:

How well do they know the applicant?
Do they know the applicant personally, or professionally, or both?
How long have they known him?
How often do they see him?
Who else knows the person as well as the reference? Who knows her better? (This gives you someone else to check with if you want.)

References provide a glimpse of the person, but only a very limited glimpse. The goal is to see who this person really is. Ask questions like these:

What is the person’s character?
What are his interests?
What does she value?
What does he believe?
How does the applicant spend his free time, his money?
What are his hobbies?

Ask about observable behaviors in their work with children:

Has the reference observed the applicant work with children?
How did the applicant handle himself?
How did the children respond?
Does the applicant ever talk about children? His own? Other children? Get some examples.

If the reference has not observed the applicant with children, find out about the person’s loyalty and honesty:

How trustworthy is the applicant?
Has the applicant ever been in any trouble?
Any incidents involving alcohol or drugs?
Any outbursts of anger?
What kind of jokes does the person tell?
How would the reference characterize the applicant’s sense of humor?
How balanced is the person’s life between work, entertainment, family, church?
How does the person manage and spend his money?

Ask about the applicant's spiritual character:

What insight does the reference have on the applicant’s religious and spiritual life?
How self centered or self sacrificing is the applicant? Get examples.

Answers to these questions should give you a pretty good idea about the person. Be especially aware if you get significantly different answers from different people. Very often people present different personas at work, at church, in professional organizations, etc. Generally speaking, healthier and more spiritually mature people are the same wherever they are. Unhealthy people tend to act quite differently depending on the context.

Tom Hampson is the founder of The Truth Alliance Foundation.

Tip of the Week: Keeping Kids' Attention

2011-12-08T11:00:00.000-08:00

I came across this video by Dale Hudson who is the director of children's ministry at Christ Fellowship Church in Palm Beach, Florida. In it, he gives some amazing tactics for gaining and re-gaining the attention of children you are teaching. With his permission, I am sharing his video here:

Suburban Isolation

2011-12-06T10:00:00.000-08:00

     I have written before on this blog about how community involvement in our schools is one of the key pieces of educational reform. I believe that a truly great school has three things: excellent programming (high-quality curriculum, teaching, and materials), outstanding leadership, and a community that is engaged and has a sense of ownership in its local school. Churches are (or at least can and should be) important members of a local community and are stakeholders in the educational system in their community. I believe that churches can and should also work to empower parents and encourage businesses to become supporters and advocates for the kids in their community and the schools that serve them. Every child in every neighborhood should have a quality education.
     This all sounds good in theory, but one very practical problem I have been thinking about lately is the issue of "suburban isolation." It is challenging to engage a community in a school when very little sense of community exists. I live in a geographically suburban community. Although my town is ethnically and economically diverse and shares many "urban" problems such as gang activity, homelessness, and hunger, it is geographically and architecturally suburban. The very way that suburban neighborhoods are laid out creates a sense of isolation. We have roads that lead to nowhere (cul de sacs), garages in the back of homes, no front porches to sit on, and privacy fences in our backyards. I also live in a northern climate, and we are now entering the season of extreme isolation. Pretty soon it will be so cold that only the hardiest souls will be out walking their dogs, and other than that we can go for months without even seeing our next door neighbors except for when they pass by in their cars.
     The point I am making is that if we want to have solid community involvement in our schools, then we need to build solid communities. And the question I have is: How can we create a sense of community and belonging in a suburban context with all its architectural emphasis on separation?

Prioritizing Relationships and Results Ahead of Curriculum

2011-12-03T10:00:00.000-08:00

     This past Tuesday, I went out to visit one of our Crossroads Kids Club sites. This particular site has been led by Patty LoCascio for at least five years. When Patty saw me, she was less than enthusiastic about my presence. "Why are you here?" she wanted to know. I made a joke about how it seems like she never wants me to visit, and she explained that I make her nervous and that she was not following the Crossroads curriculum plan for that day (which apparently made her more nervous). She said that she planned to explain the gospel to the students using the classic "bridge illustration" that day.
     As a side note, I am personally not a big fan of the bridge illustration for a number of reasons, including the fact that it focuses on us coming to God instead of the fact that God came to us—"to seek and to save that which was lost." In any case, later that day I received an e-mail from Patty telling me that 14 children had decided that they wanted to be forgiven and to follow Jesus! 14 children responded to her presentation of the gospel message. 14 lives are changed forever.
     The curriculum plan for that day called for the students to learn about how to resolve conflict and get along with their siblings. What if Patty had followed the leading of Crossroads instead of the Holy Spirit? What if I had expressed my reservations about the "bridge" and Patty had happened to listen? Only God knows what might have happened, but I suspect that the results would not have been as good. The other day I wrote a post about how Crossroads offers connection, curriculum, and consulting to local churches wishing to have school-based ministries. As important as the curriculum piece is (and it is very important), the consulting—the relationships—are far more important.
     A Kids Club leader must have a healthy relationship with the Lord. They need to listen to his leading and follow that regardless of the curriculum plan. Second, they must keep their eye on the ball, by which I mean that our goal is for all children to come to know, love, and serve Jesus. Sometimes they will need to modify or abandon a lesson plan to move toward that goal. To determine this, the leader needs to be in touch with both the Lord and with the students. Who knows? They may even use illustrations that I personally don't like, and they might see great results! Bottom line: Relationships and results are far more important than any curriculum or another person's preferences. In the end, I suppose that relationships are the curriculum—they are the "how" of what we do. And I am so glad that Patty did what she did and that there was much rejoicing among the angels on Tuesday as 14 children turned from sin and turned to Jesus!

What Do I Do?

2011-12-01T11:00:00.000-08:00

Sometimes my youngest daughter wants to know what it is that I do all day. That is a good question, and I have been thinking about not only what I do but what Crossroads Kids Club does. What is it that we can offer churches who want to engage with public schools? I have boiled it down to three things—three C's:

CONNECTION. First, Crossroads Kids Club is a name brand and serves as an umbrella organization. This is helpful in opening the doors to new schools and districts. Recently, I met with a pastor and principal in Bloomingdale, Illinois. Although the principal and the pastor were already friends, the principal was very cautious about having anything "religious" in his building. Because this church was hoping to start a Crossroads Kids Club program and because Crossroads has been operating in public schools for over a decade, I was able to provide the principal with names and phone numbers of other principals with whom he could speak to investigate us. He seemed to appreciate receiving this information, and just this week I received an e-mail from him saying that the door is open and explaining how he and the superintendent wanted to structure things with regard to the church's relationship to the school. So, a connection to an umbrella organization opens doors to new schools and new districts.

CURRICULUM. Second, we have learned that it is very difficult to find curriculum that works well in schools. There are a several challenges we face going into the schools. To start with, we have to keep things very simple and portable. We have to get in and get out quickly, so we can't have elaborate set ups or activities requiring lots of preparation. Also, we have found that much published material is heavily literacy-based. We deal with a lot of non-native speakers of English and other students that are below their grade level in reading, so we need a curriculum that is "hands on" and not literacy based. Finally, much of what is out there presupposes knowledge of Christian faith. We regularly encounter students from non-Christian (e.g., Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, etc.) backgrounds, and so we cannot presuppose prior knowledge. Finally, we strive to be non-sectarian in our approach. We desire to be a Bible-based character-formation club and to stick to the parts of Scripture that are most clear. To that end, one thing that we do is not print the text of the Bible into the material but only Scripture references. We leave it to each church to decide what translation of the Bible they wish to use. One of our site directors said recently that she thought she would have to edit the curriculum to fit her denomination's theology but found that it worked just fine as it was. I took this as a sign of our success in creating something Jesus-centered, Bible-based, and non-sectarian.

CONSULTING. Third, we offer personal and contextualized advice and training to churches to help them with everything from engaging with a school for the first time to recruiting and training leaders. This is probably the most highly specialized part of what we do and draws on our years of experience working with children and with schools. Recently, I spoke by phone with a youth pastor in Orland Park, Illinois. He moved there from Texas very recently. In Texas, he had a lot of access to students on campuses, but he has found the door to school-based ministry to be closed in the Chicagoland area. I asked him for the names of the middle schools he would like to work with. I was able to determine that these schools were in three different districts and that all of them have policies that should permit a Christian after school club on campus. In fact, one district's policies explicitly mentioned that religious groups would not have to pay a rental fee. The point of this story is that school districts are very often bureaucratic and difficult for church leaders to navigate. From our years of experience, it is generally easy for us to be able to find openings for churches in their communities where they have not been able to in the past, and this is a big part of our consulting.

What other things would help you to get started in school-based ministry?

Big or Small School Districts: Which Are Easier to Work With?

2011-11-29T09:00:00.000-08:00

In some recent encounters with local school districts, I have been reminded of something that seems at first to be a bit counter intuitive. When it comes to starting and leading after-school, faith-based programs inside of public school buildings, larger school districts are often easier to work with than smaller districts. I think there are several reasons for this.
First, a larger district tends to have categories established for many types of renters and activities in their buildings. Over the years, they have received numerous requests for such use and have had to establish clear guidelines and policies. Therefore, when a church approaches them about hosting a character-formation club after school, they often have a category in which to assign this type of request. A smaller district, by contrast, often tends to "freak out" and respond with, "I'm not sure we can do this."

     Second, large districts tend to have more legal help. Some may even have their own legal departments on staff. The result of this is that their policies about equal access and free-speech-related issues will often be right in line with where the courts are currently. By contrast, I have seen school district policies that were written in the 1980's (I was in elementary school in the 80's, and I am nearly 40!). Clearly, these latter policies do not reflect the openness of more recent court decisions.
     Third, larger districts do tend to be bureaucratic. This means they are less relational and more systematized. This can be both good and bad. A big part of Crossroads' strategy for working with schools is to "make friends." With a large district, however, this usually comes after time instead of at the beginning. The good part of the bureaucracy is that decisions will be made more impartially and not based on gut feelings or whether the administration happens to like you or not.
     So, which is easier to work with: a large district or a small one? Each one has its own challenges and opportunities, and it is difficult to generalize. The point I am making in this post is simply that, although oftentimes there is a perception that larger districts are harder to work with, the opposite can be true. Much less education of the administration may be needed for them to allow access to church groups because of their many experiences, better legal policies, and established procedures (a.k.a. bureaucratic paperwork). The bottom line is that churches can and do work with schools in both large and small districts.

First Amendment Balance

2011-11-24T09:00:00.000-08:00

     "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."
     So reads the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States. Fewer than 50 words and yet so much ink has been spilled and so many battles fought in courts about their interpretation. This is the key legal foundation for understanding a proper "separation of church and state." (Incidentally, this amendment was interpreted only with regard to the federal government, but in 1925 the Supreme Court ruled that the due process clause of the 14th Amendment applied the 1st Amendment to state and local governments as well.) There is very little in the way of legislation that governs the nature of relationships between religious groups and governmental groups (like school districts). Therefore, much of what has been established as law has come from a number of court cases relating to the 1st Amendment.
     There are several key parts to the Amendment that the courts seek to balance. First, the government cannot create a state church ("no establishment of religion"). Generally, this means that a governmental unit cannot do anything to favor a particular religion or religious viewpoint. It cannot, for example, require people to pray or to attend a religious gathering. A second key point in this Amendment is that private citizens have the right to the "free exercise" of their religion and the right to "freedom of speech." As well, we have the right "peaceably to assemble." These are a lot of rights! When it comes to holding a religious activity inside of a school, the government (school) cannot endorse the activity or require anyone to attend. However, it must remain religiously neutral allowing private citizens the free exercise of their religion. If the building is open for other types of groups to peaceably assemble, then it must be available to Christian groups on the same terms. As well, when a school creates a space for outside groups to use its facilities, it has created a "limited public forum." The forum may be limited in terms of the scope of what may take place there, but it may not be limited with regard to a particular viewpoint because viewpoints are protected by our right to free speech.
     So, the bottom line is that a school may block all groups from using their space, and this would include religious groups because they are a subset of "all." However, if the school allows other outside groups to use its facilities then it must allow all groups equal access on the same terms without regard to whether the group espouses a religious or non-religious viewpoint. For example, if the school allows a Boy Scout group to use their facilities right after school at no charge, then it ought to allow a church to conduct a Crossroads Kids Club program right after school at no charge as well. The reason is that by allowing the Scouts to meet, the school has created a limited public forum. The forum at that point includes a non-profit organization sponsoring a character-formation club. A church is also a non-profit organization, and a Crossroads Kids Club program is also a character formation club albeit from a Christian viewpoint. The one thing the school may not constitutionally do is argue that because the organization is a church or because the activities have religious content, they cannot take place in a school. The Supreme Court ruled definitively on this in the case of Good News v. Milford in 2001. The religious viewpoint is a non-issue because the government cannot be anti-religion. It must be neutral.
     This is a complex topic, and I am by no means a constitutional scholar nor an attorney. I have developed a working knowledge of these principles over many years of working in and with schools. If you have specific legal questions, please consult your own attorney. Nonetheless I hope this post gives you some basic understanding of what is possible in schools and the legal basis for it.

Three Key "I's": Inform, Inspire, Instill

2011-11-22T09:00:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago, at the Christian Community Development Association conference in Indianapolis, I heard a school district administrator from an urban district talking about how his district evaluates potential community partnerships. He said that they look at three I's: inform, inspire, instill. Essentially each one of these words is the basis for a question:

How will this relationship inform what the schools do?
How will this relationship inspire students to achieve and excel?
What will this partnership instill in our schools and children?

I thought that these were excellent questions for a school district to be asking about potential community partnerships whether they be with businesses, churches or other non-profit organizations, other governmental entities, or colleges and universities. I think that these questions are also relevant for churches when asked in reverse:

How will our relationship with the schools inform what we do as a church?
How will this relationship inspire our church members to serve the community?
What will this partnership instill in our congregation? (i.e., How will it shape us?)

The bottom line is that I think this is a great framework for churches to use to look at what they expect to give and receive by connecting with a local school. A genuine friendship always changes both parties involved. When a church chooses to engage with a school, it will have an impact on the school. Therefore this school administrator is very wise in creating a framework for thinking about the potential positive impact. It is wise for a church to consider what it can offer a school in the way of informing, inspiring, and instilling. Then the church can highlight those benefits when talking with administrators who are less-than-open-minded about church-state issues. And it is also a good idea to realize that a partnership will affect the church and to consider how this will be true.

An Object Lesson: Gospel Chemistry

2011-11-17T11:00:00.000-08:00

I have been working on writing some new curriculum for Crossroads: "Snapshots of God." In one lesson, we use an object lesson that talks about how sin messes up our lives, but when Jesus comes in he cleans up our lives and restores us. Here is a video that demonstrates the object lesson. Following that is a second video that explains how to prepare the three chemical solutions to repeat this object lesson yourself. And below the video is a list of the chemicals used and links to buy the two items you might not find in your house or local grocery store. Enjoy!

Materials Needed

Water
Measuring Cup (Liquids)
Tablespoon Measure
Corn Starch
Coffee Filter
Chlorine Bleach
Sodium Thiosulphate Crystals
Potassium Iodide Tablets

Tyler's Story

2011-11-15T09:30:00.000-08:00

In this brief video, Tyler Duval shares how he came to know Jesus through Crossroads and what he is doing with his life now as a college student. (Sorry about all the outdoor noise. Just crank up the volume and you will be able to hear him.)

A New Vision for School-Based Youth Ministry (Guest Post by Nat Bodmer)

2011-11-11T08:49:00.000-08:00

Nat Bodmer and his wife, April

     In September, I completed my 11th year in youth ministry. At age 33, I'm now considered a “veteran” in my field, which is not to be confused with an expert. I feel like I have more questions than when I started. I have also noticed that there is something very broken and wrong with the prevailing youth ministry paradigm. I thought it was just that I was getting old and needed to move on, but then something happened that changed my perspective.
     Up to this point I had escaped the horror of what happened on September 12. As my senior pastor and I drove to the hospital we did not yet know the severity of Josh’s medical situation, but over the following week my heart would be broken and impassioned in ways I never thought possible. Josh Lindgren was a student who attended our church’s youth ministry while in junior high, but he lost interest as he grew older. He would drop by my office from time to time and make me laugh. He was a great kid. As I sat with Josh's parents at the hospital, many of their friends were praying. Prayers of pain and trust, along with tears of helplessness and expectation, were all around the room. Upon entering Josh's hospital room, the reality of everyone's emotions was justified and magnified with my first glimpse of Josh. His body, which was being kept alive by technology, didn't convince anyone that Josh was actually there. We prayed over him and as I left the room I understood the gravity of the situation. Later that night others joined Josh's parents to sing, pray and begin the mourning process. There was a great sense of community, love and support for Josh and his parents. Josh officially passed away in the early morning hours of September 13, with family and friends by his side.
     Later that morning I sat in the Lindgren's neighbor's driveway grieving with family and friends. Every once in a while a group of students would come and pay their respects to the Lindgren family. I was amazed at how many of the students had never met Josh’s parents, Jim and Linda Lindgren, yet they bravely came. My thoughts were swirling. What do I do now? As afternoon came a light went on in my head. We would open the church building that night for whomever wanted to come and share their memories of Josh. I was able to pray with the students and parents as well as give the message of hope through the gospel. It was an amazingly powerful night for me and I hope others. At the end of that time together I still felt helpless. I knew that the 200 or so students who had come to our church that night would not return on a regular basis as much as I wanted to connect with them. How would I continue to engage with these students after the immediate crisis that had drawn them together? I connected with a number of them on Facebook as a means of communicating information about Josh's funeral and wake. But I was not about to become a “creeper” by writing on all of their walls trying to convince them to come to our church. Yes, most of them needed to hear more of the gospel. But, frankly, the gospel wasn't what was first on my mind at that time. I just wanted somehow to walk with them through their time of mourning and to earn their trust—not so I could then side swipe them with the gospel but simply so that I could help.
     I knew that I had to stop expecting students to come to me. The students who are part of my youth group hail from six different high schools and a number of middle schools. They need more support than one church youth group can offer if they are going to truly make any kind of impact in their schools. My approach to ministry had to change. I had to meet the students where they spent most of their time—to become part of their community throughout the week so that I would have the opportunity to connect when tragedy strikes. I needed to empower the students that attend my church to make a difference in their schools. God answered my prayers by allowing me to work with two great guys.
      Matt Armstrong is the director of Crossroads Kids Club (www.crossroadskidsclub.com). Matt has helped me see a vision for ministry in our nation’s middle schools. Although Matt works primarily with elementary schools right now, (hence the name “Kids Club”), he and I have recently ventured into one of our local middle schools. This has been an exciting experience for me. This school is two blocks away from our church. When the weather is nice (which is about two days a year in Chicago!), a good percentage of the student body walks through our church parking lot on their way to and from school. I've always wondered how I could reach them—connect with them—on their turf. Matt has shown me the amazing possibilities for doing an after school program that unashamedly teaches the gospel. I now have an opportunity to be inside the middle school closest to our church on a weekly basis to build relationships and share the love and word of Jesus where they are before tragedy strikes. My hope is to equip students from my church youth group and help support them as they reach their peers through this school-based ministry. It makes much more sense to me to go where my students are and help guide and direct them to have an impact on their school rather than expecting them to drag their friends to me.
     Mark Robinson has reignited my passion for a ministry called Uprising (www.studentuprising.wordpress.com). As a student in Willow Creek's youth ministry he and his youth pastor developed a ministry that would unite the Christian teens in a given school. Through this unity they will experience encouragement, accountability, and be challenged with a mission—they will use their unity to reach their school for Christ. As Mark’s site proclaims, "If we spend thirty-five hours a week, five days a week for 180 days at school, I don’t think it’s a mistake that God has given us an opportunity to live our mission in our high schools." Mark and I, as well as many other youth workers in our area, are committed to seeing that our Christian students are given a vision for their schools.
      What I realized through the events of this past September is that it's not about those 200 grieving high school students coming back to me. Rather I need to go to them. Further I need to equip and empower their peers in such a way that these students (and many others) see, hear and experience Christ through the Christian presence on their campus. Then as their lives are transformed the church will be built. The challenge that lies before me and other youth pastors is a question asked by senior pastors and church boards—whose church will be built? Will it be mine or Mark's or Matt's or… Christ’s?
     My vision for youth ministry had become stale before I met Matt and Mark and many of the other youth workers I'm working with now. Josh's death made it very evident to me that if I keep doing youth ministry the way I had for years before I would continue to miss the opportunity to impact students who might never come into our church short of a tragic event like Josh’s death.
     As the Church we must engage our schools at every level. We need to be seen as a vital part of the fabric of the community. Much of community life revolves around local schools. If this is the case, why are we not embracing this reality and getting involved in the support and development of those schools? We should be the largest cheerleaders for our schools: teachers, staff, students and parents. Crossroads and Uprising have the perfect opportunity to help students stand strong for Christ while being an encouragement to local schools.

Nat Bodmer is the youth pastor at Calvary Community Church in Schaumburg, Illinois. He blogs at http://natbodmer.blogspot.com/ and you can contact him at natbodmer@gmail.com.

Look Up and Look Around

2011-11-05T09:30:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, I attended the Christian Community Development Conference in Indianapolis. One of the key themes was education reform. I attended a number of exciting work shops—some of which I have written about here on this blog. One of the things that struck me was how so many wonderful things are taking place between churches and schools all over the nation. What also struck me was how there is virtually no connection between these churches.

In other words, what I noticed is that the churches were doing amazing things in their own local communities, but they do not seem to be in a place where they are looking up and looking around to see what others are doing and to build relationships with them. Of course, attending this conference was a start, but there are other school-based ministries I know of that I don't think were represented at this conference. It struck me that some how, some way connecting the Christians with a heart to impact our schools with others from around the country—for relationship, encouragement, ideas, sharing best practices, sharing resources, and so on—would be a wonderful thing to do. The question is simply: How?

Do you know of any organizations, ministries, publications, etc. working to connect Christians and churches interested in school-based ministry one with the other?

The Elephant in the Room

2011-11-03T11:30:00.000-07:00

This past Tuesday I had a meeting with a pastor and a local school principal in Chicagoland. The school is in a small, mostly-middle-class district in the suburbs. Meeting with principals and pastors is nothing new to me as I work trying to help churches start Crossroads Kids Clubs inside of their neighborhood schools. However, what was unusual about this particular meeting was that the principal very directly and very early in the conversation brought up his concerns about working with a church. It didn't seem like he was against working with a church personally, but he did have some concerns about the separation of church and state. I was actually very glad that he brought this issue up so early and so directly because otherwise the church-state issue can be the elephant in the room.
In the course of the conversation, I explained that we do not want a formal partnership or affiliation with the school because those things would likely be a violation of the Constitution as the courts have interpreted it. However, the courts have made it very clear that a school should be religiously neutral and not religion-free. When a school allows an outside group to use its facilities, it has created a "limited public forum." It is limited in the sense that the topics may be limited but the viewpoints expressed may not. What this means practically is that if Scouts are in a school (and they are in this one), then Crossroads Kids Club should be treated exactly like the Scouts. This is because by allowing an outside group like a scout troop to use space, the school has created a limited public forum. As it turns out scouting is about character formation. Crossroads Kids Club is a Christian character formation club. We teach children to live and act according to biblical teaching. The fact that we are teaching character from a Christian perspective is a viewpoint, which is protected by the free speech clause of the First Amendment.
I realized something after speaking with this principal though. I want to be in a position not only to explain these things, but I would also like to make sure that we operate in such a way so that we keep educational leaders out of any potential trouble. This particular principal was very cautious. Others though have thrown caution to the wind. It is important in establishing a relationship of trust with the school that we protect them and use the knowledge we have to make sure that they don't unintentionally get themselves into some hot water by appearing to endorse a particular faith. In other words, we want to uphold the Constitution, which simultaneously prohibits the state from establishing or endorsing a religious perspective and protects the free exercise of religion and the freedom to express our convictions in public places, including schools.

Justice for All—Is It Worth It? (Guest Post by Kirsten Strand)

2011-11-01T08:30:00.000-07:00

Originally published by Kirsten Strand on Sunday, November 28, 2010. Kirsten is on staff at Community Christian Church based in Naperville, Illinois. Several years ago the church began working with the schools of a low-income community next door to Naperville. Kirsten and her husband, Scott, moved their family into the low-income school district to further impact the community and its schools with an incarnational approach. Here she writes about one of the challenges of that move—providing a quality education for her own children.

It was bound to happen. Questioning whether we made the right decision to move our family from one of the best performing school districts in the state to one of the worst. In three and ? years, I have pondered, but not seriously questioned our decision. This week, I have questioned. Not regretted, but definitely questioned.

We are blessed that neither of our kids struggles to learn. In Naperville, they both tested as “gifted.” There is no “gifted” program in East Aurora, but we hoped the general education would be sufficient if we supplemented with some work at home. And through elementary school, that was the case. But now, with a 6th and 7th grader, it’s not that simple. Between the schedule of after-school sports, music, and church activities and the growing desire for cyber and in-person connection with friends, there is little time for much academic “supplementing.” And after seven hours at school and the bit of homework they have, it is understandable that they would have little tolerance for extra work that isn’t impacting a grade.
But, in those seven hours at school they seem to be missing something Scott and I believe is core and essential to a solid liberal arts education—analytical reading and writing. There is no reading of the classics, no essays, book reports, or critical analysis about what they read. We believe that critical thinking and learning to formulate thoughts and ideas, both verbally and in writing, is an essential skill. We have become increasingly concerned that they are not learning that skill at school. After doing a little digging into what middle school kids in Naperville are doing and having some discussions with the boys’ current teachers, we are now sure they are not getting that . . .at least to the point we believe is necessary. And that really concerns me. Concern is Satan’s playground, so he is having a jolly time with me. . . causing worry, questioning, doubt.
We knew we would face challenges when we moved. And going into this, we believed strongly that we couldn’t just think about our own kids’ education. We were moving in part to fight for a more just and equitable educational system in general. But now that our kids are being directly impacted in a noticeable way, the success driven, “upwardly mobile” American mentality is fighting its way back into my thinking. I find myself questioning whether fighting for “justice for all,” is really worth the risk to my own children's success.
But what if everyone let the concern for their own children dictate the risks they were willing to take for all of God's children? I don't think there would be any hope for justice. And THAT really concerns me. I'm pretty sure Jesus would say that there are more important lessons for our kids to learn than how to write a critical essay. I'm not going to be satisfied with the status quo. Scott and I definitely have some work to do in addressing this concern--for our boys, and for all of the kids here in East Aurora who dream of going to college and being competitive in our American society. But, I guess it is time to really practice what I preach.
"Love your neighbor as you love yourself." I think that means I need to love my neighbors' children as much as I love my own. I know working for "justice for all," is the right thing…even when it means my kids aren't getting the best. That doesn't feel good. But, I guess dying on the cross didn't feel very good either.

You can check out Kirsten's blog here: "Uniting People to Restore Communities."

Four Ways to Reach Bullies (Guest Post)

2011-10-29T06:30:00.000-07:00

by Mimi Bullock
(Re-pubished from Ministry-To-Children.com with permission. While focused on dealing with bullies in the church context, the principles apply to school-based ministry as well.)

There’s little doubt that bullying among children is significantly rising in the United States. The increase is so dramatic that the Centers for Disease Control recently issued a 2011 Fact Sheet describing the problem as a “form of youth violence.” This shocking escalation comes as no surprise to parents and guardians of school age children. Sad stories about teen suicides as a result of bullying or more prevalent today in our cyber social culture.
Children without parental guidance, lacking spiritual and moral definition find bullying an effective tool for getting what they want. It happens every day at schools, in neighborhoods–even at church.
It’s easy to scoop up little ones and want to protect them from their aggressors, but who’s reaching the bullies? As the parent of a child with Autism, I know the pain parents feel when bullies victimize children who can’t defend themselves. As a Christian, my heart also melts for the kids who become bullies. What does the future hold for them?
A recent, successful push in child evangelism efforts left our church asking the same thing. Our bus was full of kids, some who were known bullies. Tough questions arose like, “How do we minister to everyone yet make kids feel safe?” Other questions like, “Can we change how a bullying child interacts with others with just one or two days of ministry per week?”
Here’s what we discovered about reaching bullies in our church.

Teach frequently on the Golden Rule. It seems so simplistic, but to these kids, the Golden Rule is a great revelation. How freeing it is for children when they understand that yelling and bullying aren’t what God had in mind for them. Have mini lessons ready on “Do unto others..” at the beginning of every service and make it the central lesson at least once a month. Involve “bullies” in role-playing and demonstrating the object lessons.
Pull bullies close. Bullies need lots of love because bullying is based on fear. A bully may resist your hugs or kind words at the beginning but don’t give up. Make it a point to include a child labeled as a bully. Break down barriers with Christian love and keep the child close so you can monitor his behavior.
Correct, don’t challenge. When correction becomes necessary, and it will, make sure you do it the right way. For younger children, stoop down to their eye level. Get on your knees to have a chat. Say. “Jerry, were you following the Golden Rule when you pushed Susie down?” Don’t embarrass, humiliate or make a public spectacle of the child. Be stern but loving and follow up with any punishments, like losing a treat.
Take threats seriously. If you are threatened or another child is threatened take the threat seriously. Quickly separate the bully from the other child and immediate take the child to a pastor or administrator. Take threats seriously so children will know that making threats won’t be tolerated in your ministry.

Every child that bullies needs love and attention but unfortunately, some children won’t be willing to change their behaviors, at least not for a long while. Be patient but don’t neglect the other children in your ministry. Don’t forget to pray for the children in your care. Prayer can move mountains.

Read more about Mimi at her blog, “Encouragement for Christians.”

Lasting Impact

2011-10-27T06:30:00.000-07:00

As some of you may know, I work from inside the Awana Clubs headquarters in Streamwood. Last month, I was walking through a hallway at the office, and a woman who works for Awana that I had not ever met before stopped me. She asked, "Are you Matt Armstrong?" I said that I was. "From Crossroads Kids Club?" she continued. Again, I answered yes, but by now I was wondering where this conversation was heading. She said that she wanted to share a story with me. The Sunday before, there had been a baptism at her church, and a 17-year-old girl was baptized. Apparently the girl's testimony was that she had come to know the Lord through her time at Crossroads Kids Club years ago. I found out the girl's name and found her on Facebook. I told her that I heard she had been baptized and mentioned Crossroads. She quickly wrote back, "Yes! Crossroads was life-changing." I also learned that her parents have been attending church for a while as well.
We discovered in a survey of Crossroads students that 48.6% placed their trust in Jesus as their Savior through Crossroads. What is cool about what happened last month is that it gets behind the numbers and allows us to see a student who heard the gospel in her public school, came to trust Jesus as a result, and is following him years down the road. This story is the goal of everything we are trying to do at Crossroads Kids Club: A person—a family—changed and changing through Jesus and connected to a local church.

Christmas Gift Mart—An Amazing Idea! (Guest Post by Andrew Brewer)

2011-10-25T06:30:00.000-07:00

Andrew Brewer is the ministry coordinator of The Externally Focused Network (EFN). Through EFN, Andrew is able to live out his passion of helping churches become the best churches for their communities, not just the best ones in their communities. He currently lives in Fayetteville, Arkansas where he and his wife are expecting their first son, Micah, in February. You can learn more about EFN by visiting their web site. Also, be sure to click here and sign up to receive "The Best Externally Focused Ideas of 2011."

Christmas Gift Mart—An Amazing Idea!

What’s the Problem?
A majority of the students in the Aurora, Illinois school district are living in extreme poverty. As a result, many of the parents are unable to get their children gifts for Christmas, leaving the parents feeling incapable and demoralized. After all, what loving parent doesn’t want to give their child a good Christmas present?

What’s a Solution?
Since 2003, Community Christian Church of Naperville, Illinois, has sponsored a Christmas Gift Mart for low-income families within several local schools. Every year, in preparation for the event, new, unwrapped toys are collected from church attendees, local businesses, schools, and other organizations in the community. These gifts are then sold to parents for the reduced price of $2.00 in order to give them the joy and dignity of choosing Christmas gifts for their children, rather than just receiving a handout.

The Christmas Gift Mart also provides free gift-wrapping, raffles off fully decorated Christmas trees, and entertains children so parents can shop undistracted. All proceeds received from the sales go back to the partner schools in order fund school-improvement initiatives, giving parents the chance to enhance their children’s education.
The first year that Community Christian hosted this event it was at one school, Brady Elementary. They collected over 1,200 toys, had 125 volunteers, and raised $820 for the school. This past year, in 2010, the event was hosted at two different schools in partnership with other churches and local organizations. They collected over 10,000 toys, had 1100 volunteers, and raised $11,300 for the schools.

Want to do something like this?
Community Christian Church has made it easy for other churches to replicate the Christmas Gift Mart. The first step is for your church to identify a partner school in an under-resourced community. Ultimately, we hope that the Mart would be just one of many ways that your church serves the school throughout the year, but it is often a good first event to begin building a relationship with teachers and staff. As you next step, we recommend downloading a manual that Community Christian has produced for any church interested in doing such an event. They have done a great job outlining how the Gift Mart works and what you need to know to pull off one in your own community. To begin downloading this manual for free, please click here.

Visit the Community Christian Church Web site, click here.

Do With, Not For Your Local School

2011-10-21T06:10:00.000-07:00

Last week I was at the Christian Community Development Association (CCDA) conference in Indianapolis. One of the key themes of the conference was education reform and school impact. I attended a number of very helpful workshops on projects that churches and ministries are doing with schools in various parts of the country. One of the key takeaways for me was this idea of doing things with a school and not for a school. A couple examples:

There is a church in Houston working with a local school district. When the pastor first approached a particular local school and asked how the church could help, the principal started listing things that the church could fund. (This is not atypical in a district that is strapped for cash, and many of them are these days.) This pastor wisely replied by asking what fundraisers the principal might want to do in which the church could help the school to raise those funds. In other words, the church did not go out and raise those funds independently and give them to the school (doing something for them), but the church worked with the school to raise the funds by supporting the school's idea for raising the funds and providing workers for the fundraising event(s).
My friend, Kirsten Strand, from Community Christian Church in Naperville, Illinois, was the co-presenter of another workshop. She shared about the numerous things her church is doing with a local school district. I have previously written about their church's parent mentoring program, but one thing that she highlighted in this workshop is that the school must provide the first mentor at a cost of $1,000. Her church will then fund up to six more mentors per school. However, it is up to the school to take the initiative to fund the first one. So, the church is working with the school instead of just doing something for the school.

There are a number of reasons that I believe the principle of "doing with, not for" is sound. Here are a few. First, it is a relational approach. If a church just writes a check and gives it to the school, it will be appreciated but not do much to build a relationship. Second, when a church works with the school, the school leaders will come to trust the church because the church is letting the school leaders set the agenda for these projects. In other words, the school has ownership and the church takes a supporting role. Third, in working with schools the church will see what is really going on in the school because they are investing time and energy working alongside (and within) the school community. Fourth, it is a well-established principle of community development that giving a hand up is much better than a hand out. If a recipient has some "skin in the game" they are much more likely to value the help whether that recipient is an individual or a school community.

What are some other examples of how a church can work with a school instead of doing things for a school?

Project vs. Relationship Outreach

2011-10-18T11:28:00.000-07:00

I think that we as church leaders have a tendency to do project-based (or event-based) outreach into our communities. It somehow seems easier or more convenient to focus on planning an outreach event or a community service project aimed at reaching kids than to work with them over the long term. When it comes to connecting with schools, our tendency is to do things such as organizing a school supply drive or a work day at the school. When it comes to evangelism, we are drawn to Vacation Bible School or Backyard Bible Club models. There is absolutely nothing wrong with any of these things. In fact, I have written on this blog previously a number of project-based ideas. However, what I am suggesting is that this approach is incomplete. The event or project ends, and then what happens? Lasting change happens in relationships.

Relationship-based outreach is harder in that it takes more sustained commitment, but it is easier in that it is slow and steady over a longer period of time. Relationship-based models of outreach would include things like tutoring or mentoring in a school, leading a Crossroads Kids Club program weekly, holding an Awana Club or Royal Rangers ministry at your church. Basically, it is a ministry that takes place consistently over the course of several weeks or months. During this time, the ministry leaders have the opportunity to work with kids in good times and bad—to really get to know them. As well, they have the opportunity to be transparent with kids and families and to really connect with them and point them to Jesus.

How is the balance between project-based and relationship-based ministry at your church?

Three Pillars of School Reform

2011-10-13T17:58:00.000-07:00

I am at the Christian Community Development Association's annual conference in Indianapolis. One of the key themes of this year's conference is education reform. Today, I attended a workshop presented by Allen and Julie Weeks from Austin, Texas. The workshop was entitled "Turning Your School Around Through Christian Community Development." Allen and Julie lead an organization called Austin Voices for Education and Youth.
Allen argued that very often consultants and bureaucrats make education reform more complicated than it needs to be. He said that there are three legs on which good schools are built:

Excellent program. Without a solid curriculum and teachers, a school will failure.
Solid leadership. It is extremely important that a school have good and consistent leadership at the helm. He talked about how leadership turnover absolutely kills schools, and he mentioned one school in his community that had five principals in six years.
Community partners. In other words, can the school get parents and community members (churches, businesses, civic groups, etc.) involved in the life of the school?

Allen shared that one time he mentioned these three pieces to a principal in the Austin district. A few weeks later, he heard this principal share this concept in another setting. However, she replaced community partners with "data." He contrasted community-school reform with data-driven reform and stated that the latter is more of a top-down approach (and one which disempowers the people in the community).
I think that Allen and Julie are on to something. The results of their efforts are incredible. Within five years, a local middle school that was about to be shut down because it was failing has turned around completely. Now, in terms of student achievement, it has surpassed a number of the suburban, affluent middle schools in the district—in just five years! So, when you think of school reform, think of these three components: programming, leadership, and community partners.

More than Mentoring: Introducing Kids to Jesus

2011-10-11T09:51:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I read an article describing a mentorship ministry that connects local churches to public schools to mentor children. This is a fabulous opportunity, and I would strongly encourage churches to engage with schools by mentoring children. The mentoring that this ministry does is during the school day and so they are not free to talk about Jesus or to pray with a student. I am very glad that they recognize this and honor a healthy separation of church and state. This is all very positive. The author of the article described the positive impact that the mentoring was having on students. The whole key seems to be that having a loving, caring adult involved in a child's life can transform that child's view of him or herself and help bring academic success and socially appropriate behavior. In short, the child develops a sense of hope. This is phenomenal! What a great way to begin to engage with students and schools!
On a practical level, however, I have noted in my context that very often if a church engages in a mentoring or tutoring program at a public school they check off their "school-based ministry" check box on their to-do lists. The problem is that as great as mentoring or tutoring is, if we never introduce children to Jesus then we have not offered the best relationship in the whole world. What makes mentoring of students successful in helping them achieve academically is a supportive relationship with a loving adult. When we feel loved, we are more motivated to make changes (not just kids but adults, too).
The most important relationship that any of us can have—the most transformative relationship we can have—is with Jesus. So, mentor kids, yes! Tutor them, yes! Respect the separation of church and state, yes! But find ways to share the Good News about the hope that comes from a relationship with Jesus (the mentor and friend who will never leave them and never forsake them). This could be in an after-school club like Crossroads or in a ministry at the church to which you build a bridge from the school. It doesn't really matter, but what does matter is that we give kids real and lasting hope, which is found only in Jesus.

And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love (Romans 5:5 NLT).

A Christmas Connection Idea

2011-10-10T14:17:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago I attended a children's pastors/directors networking meeting and a fabulous Christmas outreach idea was shared—Gingerbread Nativity Sets! So, let's say that you have been working with kids in their public school for several months, and Christmas is just around the corner. You want to connect with the families of the kids and maybe even invite them to your church for Christmas. Walking into church for worship is a huge step for a non-church-attending family. So, building in some intermediate steps is a logical thing to do. This activity could be one of those steps.
So, here's the idea: Invite all your school-based ministry families to the church on a Saturday in December. Serve some refreshments and allow each family to work together to build a gingerbread nativity set (Download the instructions below.). Share a brief gospel (Christmas) message with the families, make them feel valued and very welcome and then invite them back for your Christmas worship. You can order the gingerbread slabs at a local bakery and the nativity figurines online at Oriental Trading Company. You can ask members of your congregation to bring in the various other food supplies as donations for this outreach.
We are planning to do something almost like this at my church except that we are going to do this activity along with a Crossroads Christmas program on a Sunday (December 11). I will be eager to share with you how it goes.

To download the instructions for building the set, click here.
To order the nativity set figurines from Oriental Trading Company, click here.

3 H's: Teaching Appropriate Touch

2011-10-07T06:06:00.000-07:00

     I have written before on this blog about the serious danger of pedophiles and the importance of making sure that we protect children from them. However, one of the unintended consequences of many church policies aimed at protecting children is that we create cold and sterile environments by removing the element of touch. We all know intuitively that young children (and all of us!) need appropriate physical touch. Touch can make us feel welcomed, loved, appreciated and accepted. I am afraid that we have gone overboard if our policies ban all touching.
     So, what can we do to protect children while creating a warm environment with appropriate touch? I think it is important to have this conversation with your leaders and to work it out in your own context. One of the best things we can do is to be very clear about what is and is not acceptable and to talk about that with both staff and students. In this way, we manage the environment and create healthy boundaries.
    Crossroads encourages churches to practice "3-H Contact" as students leave a Kids Club each week. The three H's are: a Handshake, a Hug, or a High five. One of the most important elements of this is that the child is the one who chooses which form of contact s/he wants from the leaders. An adult should never force a child to touch them nor touch a child in any way that the child does not want. This violates the child's basic right to his or her body. It should make any children's ministry leader uncomfortable to see an adult holding or hugging a child who is obviously uncomfortable and wants to get away as quickly as possible. So, set the parameters of appropriate touch and make it the child's choice.
      As for the 3 H's: A high five is a very non-threatening form of touch, which nonetheless communicates, "I'm okay with you. I like you. We're on the same team." It is done in celebration of victory or success. Sending the children out with a high five communicates that the session they were just part of was a win. It makes the student feel that s/he was an important part of that win. Teaching kids to offer a firm handshake is arguably and important life skill, and it communicates friendship and lack of hostility. There may have been 20 different behavior issues with a particular child, but on the way out by shaking hands you communicate, "We're okay. I still like you." A hug is a more intimate form of touch, and this is the one H where care needs to be taken. We would encourage side hugs and discourage any lengthy embraces. Still, many kids we meet in the public schools are touch-deprived and they just need a hug. We should not be afraid of this.
     Bottom line: Protecting our children from the harm of sexual predators is of the utmost importance, but let's not overreact and create a sterile, touch-free environment. Instead let's define what healthy and appropriate touch looks like in our ministry contexts and then let's embrace that (pun intended).

Ideas for Connecting with Your Local School

2011-10-05T12:24:00.000-07:00

I have been thinking lately about ideas for local churches and church leaders to make friends with schools and school districts. In this blog post I would like to share some very practical things you might do to connect with and serve your local school:

Volunteer for PTO/PTA events. Offer to give the parents who normally volunteer at various events a break. What if people from your church staffed the next event so that the PTA parents could actually enjoy the event with their child(ten)?
Provide a meal for the teachers. When is the next teacher in-service day? Why not offer to bring in lunch for the school's staff?
Volunteer in a classroom. You can listen to kids read, tutor them in math, or help in any way the teacher may ask. Personally, I teach six weeks of Junior Achievement to a class of 6th graders each year. It is only one hour per week for six weeks, but it is a way that I can serve a school in my community.
Work on the physical plant. Offer to organize a work day on a day off from school (like a Saturday), and paint what needs painting, plant what needs planting, and prune what needs pruning. There are lots of other things you can do, but I ran out of "P" alliterations.
If your school or district has a community advisory team or a clergy advisory team, join this group and contribute.
Offer a mini grant of $250 or so to the teachers in the school. They can submit a one-page proposal, and then select one of the proposals to fund.
Have people in the church write notes of encouragement to the teachers in the school as the school year is beginning. Simple notes expressing appreciation can be very well received.

These are just a few of the many ways in which you can serve your local elementary school. There are all kinds of possibilities though, and I would love to hear from others about what they are doing. Please comment to share your ideas.

Growing Your Club

2011-09-29T08:31:00.000-07:00

September and October are prime time months for launching a school-based ministry. This is when most of our Crossroads Kids Club programs begin for the school year. Right now we are in the second week of club at a number of locations. I found it interesting that in schools that we have served for a number of years, we have already reached our maximum capacity of students. However, at one new school, they started with seven students on week one and they had six students on week two. That was a little discouraging and led me to think about what makes clubs grow.

The main thing that builds the numbers of students at a club is relationship. The second thing is communication, which leads to awareness. First, the students who attend need to enjoy the club and feel connected to the club leaders and each other. The leaders can help build relationships by sending a personal note during the week to express how glad they were to meet the student and that they are looking forward to seeing them next week. They can also call parents the night before to remind them of club the next day and/or send out some reminder postcards to them that will arrive a day or two before the next club session. These things will build relationship and awareness.

Along with these strategies, it is good to equip the students to invite their friends. Always make sure that each student goes home with at least five flyers to use to invite friends. Finally, you might also offer some incentive to students who bring a friend to club with them.

Once you have a core of at least five students, a club can generally grow by focusing on creating great relationships with the core and encouraging them to invite others. Be aware that it takes a while to establish a routine of attending club on a certain day and time, so until that routine is established you might want to be making reminder calls and sending reminder cards to parents each week. So, relate and communicate for maximum early growth.

Facts + Friends + Faith = Holistic Change

2011-09-27T10:39:00.000-07:00

I have written before about Crossroads' strategy for working with schools. It centers on three F's: Facts, Friends, and Faith. I have been reflecting lately on the importance of having all three of these pieces together in concert. If you have one or two of them, the result is something other than maximum impact. In fact, I came up with a way to express this in an equation.

Facts + Faith = Conflict

Some Christian groups and churches have learned what the law says about church and state separation and they understand their legal rights. They are eager to share their faith with kids, and so they barge onto the scene demanding space and time and access to kids without building relationships with school leaders. This approach frequently leads to conflict (even to the point of lawsuits). Even in cases where it doesn't lead to conflict, it leads to coldness between the school and the church. This is not helpful for the school or the church's mission.

Facts + Friends = Social Change
There are other churches that know something of the facts, and they approach school districts with great care and concern. They make friends and they get involved in serving the school. However, they are either afraid, unwilling, or perhaps just ignorant of the fact that they can share their faith in the appropriate contexts (i.e., outside of the regular school day). Churches can do many things that lead to social change by knowing the facts and making friends, but this will fall short of holistic life change that comes from embracing the gospel.

Friends + Faith = Closed Doors
In some cases, churches may be ignorant of the facts about church-state issues related to schools. They may approach a school in the best possible way (with grace, humility, and concern) and make friends with leaders there. However, when they want to share their faith, they will often be told "no" by the school leaders. The reason is that many educational leaders are ignorant of how they should work with churches, so they air on the side of caution and block access. Knowing the facts and making friends allows a church to graciously explain the facts to educational leaders, which will often be all that is needed to open doors. In the context of relationship, schools are more likely to listen and to look into the facts of what should and should not be allowed.

Facts + Friends + Faith = Holistic Change
Finally, the equation that we use leads to the maximum benefit—holistic change. Students receive all that churches have to offer (emotional, spiritual, and social support among other things), educational leaders are supported through genuine partnerships, and a healthy separation of church and state is maintained by all sides because there is understanding and agreement on what the various laws and court decisions mean in their local context.

Do Not Despise a Small Beginning

2011-09-23T14:11:00.000-07:00

     This week six Crossroads Kids Club locations launched in the Chicago area. Four of these started in schools where we had a presence prior to this year, and two of them were started in new schools in new communities. Three of the four established schools reached maximum capacity on the first day! By contrast, one of the new schools had seven students and one had six students. However, I believe that both the established and the new clubs were equally successful.
     It is hard to start something from scratch, and getting six students there on the first week is a very healthy number. In fact, in my experience if we can get five or more students on the first week, we can usually reach maximum capacity at that site within just three or four weeks. The excitement of the club spreads quickly from these initial students to their friends. In fact, one of the established clubs I mentioned earlier started out several years ago with exactly one student attending on the first day!
     We had seven leaders and one student. The leaders might have become discouraged, but I told them that we were going to make that club session the highlight of that one student's week. We played games with him, talked with him, and made him feel special. We were energetic and enthusiastic. The next week, he brought four friends, and within a month that club had reached its capacity. The point is that a Crossroads club can grow very quickly once the kids in a school see how much fun it is and how much you care, but if only a handful of students attend the first week, do not be discouraged. Do not despise a small beginning. You never know where it will lead. And you never know what purpose God has in mind for the small number you have.

The Christian Kids Will Come First

2011-09-20T16:08:00.000-07:00

Today, I had the privilege of visiting three Crossroads Kids Clubs on their opening day. Two of them have been going for many years, and one is brand new this school year. I visited the brand new club last, and when I was talking with the club leader about how things were going she was shocked that the seven kids who had attended on this first day knew so much about the Bible. I realized then that I had forgotten to tell the new club leaders that it is very common for the first handful of students to begin attending a club to be from Christian homes. What happens is that a flyer comes home advertising a Bible club. The parents most eager to send their kids to such an activity are those who have faith themselves. So, the first wave of students you get are often from Christian homes. However, these students will now go and invite their friends from school, and in my experience a much lower percentage of Christian kids will be at the club next week. This is just how a new club tends to start in a new school.

Persistence, Patience, and Grace: How to Approach School Leaders

2011-09-19T12:45:00.000-07:00

When church leaders attempt to deal with educational leaders, there can sometimes be a degree of frustration. Church leaders are approaching the school with the thought that they have something valuable to offer the school (which they do!), and they assume that the school personnel will be grateful and welcome the church with open arms. The reality is that most of the educational leaders I know are so overworked and under-appreciated that they are just striving to stay afloat and put out the latest fire. What that means is that the educational leader may not have time to answer your e-mail or return your call because it is not their highest priority.

Let's say that your church wants to start a mentoring program or volunteer at the school or (best of all!) start a Crossroads Kids Club after school program. Whatever you are doing you want to make friends with the school's principal and any other leaders in the school district. So, you probably want to sit down and meet face-to-face. Let's say that you find the principal's name and e-mail address on the school's web site, and you send them an e-mail introducing yourself, explaining your idea for collaboration, and asking for a meeting. You spend 20 or 30 minutes to craft an e-mail that sounds just right and hit the send button. Of course, you get an immediate reply and the principal is ready to meet with you tomorrow, right? (Well, you might, but I have yet to see it work that way!) Almost never does this get a response. So, you wait a few days and then follow up with a phone call. Occasionally, you may catch the principal by phone and find that they have read the e-mail. What is more likely though is that you will leave a message with the secretary or on a voicemail. Wait a few days after leaving the message...no response. E-mail again. Call again. Drop in at the school...no response. Should you give up? No!
After all those calls and e-mails, I think most people would give up and figure that the principal is not interested in working with them. After all, they haven't returned any of your messages. There is probably frustration or even a suspicion that the principal is prejudiced against churches. Not so fast. Principals have so many things coming at them, and it may take lots of patience, persistence, and grace to actually build a relationship. First, realize that they are overworked: supervising staff, dealing with angry parents, feeling the pressure of standardized tests. Try to understand their situation and have patience. Second, be persistent. Don't expect a call back after leaving one message. Keep trying. Don't be rude or stalker-ish, but keep trying every few days. What you want to do is worth doing, so push a little. Third, be gracious. Even if you are calling for the 16th time, when you get that principal on the phone do not mention the previous 15 calls. Those don't matter anymore. Forgive for whatever offense you feel and move on with a positive conversation.
Taking into consideration the fact that you need to have patience, persistence, and grace, I would also suggest these tips for establishing communication:

Try calling about 2–3 hours after the school day ends. This is the time when the principal will likely be alone in the building completing paperwork. They may have time to receive your call then.
Before attempting to talk about your idea, just drop off a basket of goodies and a note of appreciation for the school staff to put in their break room. Odds are the principal will notice, and you will generate good will.
Attempt to build a relationship with the school secretary or office staff. Dropping off treats (as per above) is one way to do that, but be creative. The school secretary is the gatekeeper.

Not Ashamed of the Gospel

2011-09-02T14:51:00.000-07:00

"For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—the Jew first and also the Gentile" (Romans 1:16 NLT). The Apostle Paul says that the gospel is the "power of God at work, saving everyone who believes." First, I just want to say that I think that is so cool! The gospel is not a formula or a "get-out-of-hell-free card." It is so much bigger than that. It is GOOD NEWS! It is power and life. Jesus has lived and died and risen again to give us life and hope—to let us know that we are beloved of God. He invites us to repent from our sin and from trying to be good and instead to embrace this Good News through faith. In so doing, we enter into a whole new way of living—an abundant and joy-filled life. This is really powerful! It is power that saves—bringing wholeness and healing and joy.
Recently, I have been saddened because it seems that so many believers in Jesus don't seem all that fired up about the gospel. It seems that there is a preference to simply be good people as opposed to proclaiming that Jesus is the Lord and Savior who died and rose again to give us life. I can only imagine that one of two things is going on. Either some of Jesus' followers are ashamed of the gospel because it is not fashionable to confront people with the claims of Jesus, or they do not really understand the power of the gospel. I think it is probably the latter. I think that if we really understood the raw power of God revealed in the gospel message—if we have believed it, received it, experienced it—there could be no way we could be ashamed of that message. Yes, we would find ways to convey that message of Good News to different peoples and cultures in relevant ways, but convey it we would because it is powerful and we would not be ashamed.
I want to live my life in such a way that it points people to Jesus. I want the power of the gospel to impact others so that they can receive the blessings that God intends for humanity. To this end, Crossroads has a three part strategy: Facts, Friends, Faith. We teach churches to know the facts about church and state separation. Then we explore ways to make friends with public school leaders, with families and communities. And finally, we share the faith we have in Jesus in the context of those friendships. What I am seeing that bothers me so much is that there is an inclination on the part of churches either not to go into the world at all or else to go and make friends and stop with that. With the Apostle Paul, I say, "Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!" (1 Corinthians 9:16b NIV). There is no true heart change without the work of God, so how can we expect to do good and reform society apart from the Good News? Let's be who we are called to be, Church! Let's lift Jesus high! I am not ashamed.

Pervasive Pedophiles

2011-07-22T15:07:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Crossroads hosted a seminar presented by my friend, Tom Hampson, of the Truth Alliance Foundation. The topic was about how to recognize child sexual predators. The problem in many churches and organizations is that only a simple "background check" is done without any significant attempt to observe and ask questions about children's workers and potential workers. If your method of screening staff is to rely on a background check result, then you are actually waiting for someone to be caught instead of working to prevent the problem in the first place. This is because a background check simply reveals those who have been convicted of a crime not those who are perpetrators. In fact, the vast majority of pedophiles are never caught. According to Tom, 1 in 20 men is a pedophile. The average molester abuses 148 children leaving a tremendous amount of victims in our society. In fact, 1 out of every 4 women and 1 out of every 6 men have been victims of child sexual abuse (before the age of 16).
This is such a serious problem as the effects on a child can affect him or her for life. In fact, Tom has suggested that half of all male victims are dead by the age of 35 as an indirect consequence of the abuse. (The male victims have a strong tendency to abuse drugs or alcohol or to commit suicide as they get older.) The biggest take away that I got from Tom's presentation is that we need to approach our children's ministry workers with our eyes wide open. We need to use the two primary tools of a good investigator--questions and observations. When we observe something that seems a little strange, our natural tendency is to leave the situation alone. To ask questions about what someone else is doing and why is awkward and so we tend to avoid doing so. This is exactly the wrong move. When there is something suspicious or someone violates your policy, it is extremely important to get to the bottom of what is going in. As well, Tom referenced some resources from the "Stop It Now!" campaign (http://www.stopitnow.org/warnings) that can help you identify signs that a child may be abused or that a children's worker may be an abuser. If you suspect that this is the case, ask the hard questions, and then make a report to the authorities if you uncover negative information. The problem is so big and so pervasive and so painful, but we must not hide our heads in the sand. We need to take a stand--to stand up and protect the children in our church's ministries and in our communities.

Planning a Mission Trip...Across the Street

2011-07-11T14:35:00.000-07:00

It is summer, and summer means mission trips for many church leaders. I have organized a number of mission trips to far flung places over the years. Some of these trips have been more successful than others in terms of making lasting kingdom impact in the hearts of the participants and in the communities we visited. Through these experiences, I have learned a number of things that contribute to a successful mission project. Here are three of the most important things I have learned.

First, you need to have the right kind of project. The vision for the work to be done must be compelling. Second, you need solid ministry partners on the ground who will prepare for the team’s arrival and follow up with the local people touched after the team leaves. Third, it is important that a team go as learners with an attitude of humility and grace.

There are many other such principles that I might share about mission trips, but I suspect many church leaders reading this article already have a good idea about how to plan a global mission project. The reality is that there are many tools and organizations that help leaders to organize such trips. In fact, it can often be harder to organize a team to reach the people in our own communities. I would like to share one tremendous opportunity for kingdom impact in your own community along with a strategy for achieving that impact.

In the United States today, there are approximately 89,000 public elementary schools with about 39 million children attending them. It is common knowledge that children are much more receptive to the gospel than adults. In fact, George Barna’s research suggests that children between the ages of 5 and 13 are four or five times more likely to commit to Christ and become lifelong followers than people at any other age, including teenagers. As well, the population of our public schools is often more diverse than the population of the nation as a whole. I believe this is true because immigrant groups tend to be young populations with young children. Therefore, your neighborhood public school provides your church with an ideal opportunity to reach children from around the world with the Good News of Jesus right inside their public school. There are few projects or visions that I find more compelling than this kind of impact on children who still have their whole lives to live for Christ in front of them.

I mentioned that a compelling vision was the first key ingredient in a mission trip, and the second one is a strong local partner. Although hard numbers are difficult to come by, there are well over 300,000 Christian churches in the United States, which represents about four churches for every public school. It would be a rare public school in America that does not have a congregation of Jesus followers who worship within a mile or two of the school. In more urban and suburban contexts, there are very often churches within a block or two of schools, and some churches may even meet inside of schools. What better ministry partner on the ground than your local church! Your church can reach your neighborhood school by sharing the love and Word of Jesus inside of that school.

Finally, I want to talk about the strategy for reaching a school. As with all mission projects it is important to approach a school with humility and grace. The organization in which I serve, Crossroads Kids Club, has developed a strategy that centers on three “F’s”—Facts, Friends, and Faith. In the first place, it is important to understand the facts about what a legal and healthy separation of church and state means. Contrary to much popular belief, it does not mean that schools must be “religion free.” A school must be “religiously neutral” meaning that it cannot support or endorse one church or faith (or secular viewpoint) over another. Rather, with regard to the use of its space, which is public, it must give equal access to similar groups regardless of their religious viewpoint. Those are the facts as established by the courts.

Simply knowing the facts and asserting rights can be very ugly and in my view quite unlike Jesus’ approach, however. So, our second F is Friends. Schools today (perhaps more than ever before) have great needs. Class sizes are large. Teachers and administrators feel constant pressure due to standardized tests, budget pressures, and a whole host of factors. Church leaders who are willing to come alongside school leaders and provide support and encouragement are very often well received. A Crossroads Kids Club is a first step in developing a presence in a school, but it should not be the last. Once working inside the school, churches will see all kinds of opportunities to support the school and make friends there. Possible opportunities might include volunteering to coach a sports team, leading a chess club, tutoring struggling kids, helping with fundraising or fun events at the school, and chaperoning field trips.

Know the facts. Build friendships, and by all means share your faith. Faith is the third F in Crossroads’ strategy. A few days ago, a ministry colleague told me a story about how a teacher at a middle school came to know Jesus through a club that a local church was hosting at lunch time for the students in the school. This teacher had agreed to let the church-led club meet in her classroom. Through the lessons the students were receiving, this teacher’s curiosity was piqued. She visited the church leading the club and eventually came to know Jesus. She then went on to tell the school’s principal about the positive changes in her life! Our public schools are centers of community. Besides students, there are parents and a whole host of teachers, administrators, and maintenance workers engaged with schools. Your presence—your witness—inside of a school can have unexpected and far-reaching impact.

So, as you go and return from summer mission projects, I would challenge you to consider looking at a local public school—a center of community in your town—as a mission field in which your church can serve to impact your city. You can do this by knowing the facts, making friends, and sharing your faith.

An Exciting Idea

2011-07-08T10:12:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I had the privilege to meet Kirsten Strand. Kirsten is the ministry director of Community 4:12, which is an integrated auxiliary of Community Christian Church focused on compassion and justice ministries. I had heard that Kirsten was engaged in a lot of work with the schools in her community of Aurora. I was very encouraged to learn of the various ways that Community 4:12 and Kirsten are interacting with several elementary schools. Dozens of volunteers are serving the children in their community each week, and the work they are doing is tremendous.
Kirsten shared with me a little bit about one of the most innovative ideas I have heard in quite some time, which is a parent mentoring project. Essentially, they give parents a small stipend in exchange for volunteering 10 hours per week at their child's school. Through this program, they have 45 parents serving each week. It is a powerful and inexpensive way to help schools improve and to get parents more engaged in their children's education. Here is a video about the program:

Building a Scalable Model

2011-06-07T14:10:00.000-07:00

   I have been thinking a lot lately about how to build a ministry that can reach the entire nation--so that every child in America has the opportunity to hear the gospel in their public school--without having "boots on the ground." Of course, there will be local churches working in those local schools, but how can Crossroads serve and equip those churches wherever they may be. This is our challenge, and some have told me it is not possible.
   I don't have a clear answer yet about how this can happen, but I believe that the vision is from the Lord and that he will lead us to the answer. I believe that a part of the answer lies in effectively training people to be regional and city leaders. If we can establish a healthy and thriving Crossroads club in one city, then the leaders of that club might be trained by us to train and equip others in their city and their region. In this way, we will be able to spread from city to city as a movement without top-down, centralized control. This idea raises a lot more questions than it answers, but it is the direction of my thinking today.
   I believe that God has big things in mind, and I can't wait to see how he solves this strategic problem in his time and his way.

What Makes Crossroads Unique

2011-06-02T14:46:00.000-07:00

Today I was meeting with a pastor on staff at a local church, and I was sharing what makes Crossroads Kids Club unique. To my knowledge no other ministry is weaving these four strands together in one organization. Here are the four strands making us unique:

We are committed to working inside of public schools.
We are evangelistic.
We are committed to working through local churches and allowing them to "own" the clubs. In other words, we do not directly run clubs but equip local churches to establish and run effective clubs in schools.
We are aiming to build a model that is scalable to reach and serve the entire nation (and even expand internationally).

I have found organizations doing two or three of these things (For example, Child Evangelism Fellowship does 1, 2, and 4; Kids Hope USA does 1, 3, and 4; Kids Club Consultants does 1, 2, and 3.), but I have not seen any organization that is connecting churches to schools to share the gospel in a broad geographic area, and so that, in a nut shell, is what makes Crossroads unique.

A Witness Inside of School

2011-06-01T14:23:00.000-07:00

Check out this inspiring story of Austin who is sharing his faith in his public high school in San Diego. It is encouraging to see his courage and faithfulness. Also, it is great to see how God is blessing what he is doing.

Why We Develop Our Own Curriculum

2011-05-31T12:22:00.000-07:00

   Summer is here, and that means curriculum development season. This summer we plan to begin work on our next year of Kids Club curriculum--a theme called "Following Jesus," which we plan to test out during the upcoming school year in our own local community before offering it to church affiliates outside of my home church in Streamwood. Some day I hope that Crossroads offers eight full years of material to churches and that each church can choose what theme they would like to use for a particular year. (Currently, we have two years of material available for our affiliated churches.)
   Over the years we have tried various approaches to designing the lessons that we teach at Crossroads Kids Club. We have used curriculum from an outside source, and we have used material that I write personally. Recently, I met a leader from another school-based ministry who uses published materials as a base for their lessons and then writes a "cover" or add-on to the curriculum to simplify and modify it for the school context.
   Although we are not now and never hope to be a "publisher," we do plan to continue producing high-quality curriculum for Crossroads affiliated churches. Why? The context of school-based ministry is so different from other contexts. First, you need high impact lessons that do not require a lot of materials because materials all have to be carried in and out of the building since the program takes place in someone else's space. Second, today's kids need a variety of methods to communicate with them--dramas, stories, discovery activities and more. Many children in public schools are learning English as a second language, and so we need materials that are not overly dependent on literacy skills. Third, many kids are coming from a non-Christian background, and they need the absolute basics (like defining who God is and what sin is). Finally, by writing our own materials as a collaborative team, we hope to remove as much denominational bias as possible and produce material that can be used by Christians from a variety of backgrounds.

Middle School Ministry

2011-05-27T06:43:00.000-07:00

   As we have begun the adventure of trying to equip churches to share the Good News of Jesus inside of public elementary schools around the nation, I have discovered something (or at least been reminded of something I knew and had forgotten). Middle Schools are sometimes part of a community's elementary schools. In Milwaukee, for one example, the schools are for grades K-8 or 9-12. Crossroads is definitely not a high school ministry, and there is lots of stuff going on for high schoolers anyway (Young Life, Campus Life, etc.). Some of the organizations focused on teens do have middle school programming, but it strikes me that it is not the core of who they are. Yesterday, I met with some missionaries from Child Evangelism Fellowship, and I learned that CEF does not serve middle school students but only younger kids. So, the middle schoolers are caught in the middle! It seems like they are too young for the sweet spot of teen ministries and too old to be in elementary school ministries.
   Earlier this week I met with a youth pastor from Schaumburg, Illinois. He shared that his church is located very near a middle school and that about 100 students pass through the church's property each day after school. Since I had been thinking about the need for a middle school ministry anyway, I asked him if he would be interested in working together to develop a middle school, school-based, church-led ministry for Crossroads, which we could then share with other churches. He talked with his senior pastor about this, and there was evidently some interest because we are planning to go and meet with the school's principal next week to see if there is any openness to starting an after-school club there next fall.
   I am not sure what all this means, but I am sure that it is important for us to eventually serve students from at least grades 1 through 8. If any readers know of any middle school ministries that are church-led and school-based, I would love to hear about them. Would you please post a comment?

Check Their References' References

2011-05-25T17:34:00.000-07:00

   I had the privilege of spending some time this afternoon with my new friend, Tom Hampson. Tom has spent decades as an investigator for the State of Illinois and is a licensed private investigator. He is also working on a ministry called the Truth Alliance Foundation. Tom is an expert in the behavior of child predators. Previously, he told me that 1 in 4 girls in the U.S. is molested as is 1 in 6 boys. Being someone who is a "high justice" person, these numbers are very disturbing to me and make me angry.
   Today Tom and I were talking about ways that churches can keep children safe from predators. A couple key points: First, check the references' references. It turns out that checking the references a person provides on a volunteer application is not enough. Child molesters often associate with other molesters. They are likely to have plenty of references who will cover up their evil behaviors. The way around this is to call the person's references and ask them for the name of the person with whom the potential volunteer worked most closely (to ask the reference for another reference). Then call that person and ask them questions about the candidate. Using this method, you are much more likely to detect any problems. Second, letting applicants know up front that you will do this sort of a background check will weed out the vast majority of pedophiles and keep them from applying in the first place.
   I am so troubled by the enormity of this problem and the fact that the Church is very often naive and therefore fails to protect children. I hope that I can persuade Tom to share some other tips from time-to-time on this blog site so that together we can protect our kids.

Student of the Week

2011-05-09T11:32:00.000-07:00

   Something we started doing a few years ago was to select a "Student of the Week" at a Kids Club. (I think my wife was actually the first person to come up with the idea, so I will give her full credit here.) Sometimes, depending on the size of a club, there are several students of the week on any given day, but we still call each one the "Student of the Week." The club leader will announce who the Student of the Week is and then they will come to the front of the group. The other students and leaders then have an opportunity to give a verbal gift to that student. Verbal gifts are affirming or encouraging words. Finally, the leader gives the student a small gift of candy or stickers or something similar. The students each get a turn to be Student of the Week during the course of a year.
   The Student of the Week concept accomplishes three very important things. First, it creates a routine and ritual that helps students to feel that they belong to something special. Second, it makes each child feel affirmed and valued when they get their turn as Student of the Week. (Who doesn't like to hear others say nice things to them?) Finally, and perhaps most importantly, it teaches the students to say positive and encouraging words to one another. It's no secret that kids can be very unkind to one another. At Kids Club we hope not only to keep kids from being negative and putting others down, but we want to teach them to do the opposite--to build others up.
   Below you can watch a video clip of a Crossroads' site director, Teesh Mariotti, facilitating a Student of the Week time. This video was shot toward the end of the year. Notice how eager the kids are to share something positive about their peer. I am excited when I see kids eager to say kind things to someone else.

Rights Don't Make Us Right

2011-05-06T14:12:00.000-07:00

I imagine that most of the readers of this blog (which I think at the moment includes only my mom and Jim Harding) may be aware that in 2001, the Supreme Court of the U.S. acknowledged the constitutional right for Christian groups to meet inside of schools on the same terms as non-religious groups that are similar. So, for example, if a school district allows a Boy Scout or Girl Scout group to meet on the premises free of charge, then they must also allow a Crossroads Kids Club to use the facilities under the same terms and conditions. Both groups are focused on character formation. One (Crossroads) does so from a Christian viewpoint, but it is illegal to discriminate against a group based on its religious viewpoint.

So, under the Constitution of the U.S. as interpreted by the highest court in the land, we have some limited legal rights to access. I am thankful for this, of course, but I have also been thinking about a phrase in Philippians chapter 2 in the New Living Translation (1996 edition). It says that Jesus "did not demand and cling to his rights as God. He made himself nothing; he took the humble position of a slave and appeared in human form" (verses 6b-7). I have been thinking about what this means for me and for Crossroads Kids Club. We sincerely love the children in public schools, and we want to share the love and Word of Jesus with them because of that love. We are called to love our neighbors who are public school administrators and board members as well. This creates a bit of a dilemma at times because I am finding that many school districts have policies that are either ambiguous or just flat out unconstitutional. Churches have a legal right to challenge these policies, and yet I think doing so may not be following Jesus' example. He did not "demand and cling to his rights." What if we could say to a school in a gracious way, "Your policies are illegal and we'd love to help you fix them, but even if not we want to serve you and your students. We want to help and not hurt. We give up our rights and lay aside our demands. Your policies will not allow us to have a Christian after-school club, but what can we do to serve?" In other words, how can we approach schools with the humility of Jesus who gave up his rights and took on flesh? I think if we can figure that out, doors will begin to open even wider than they might if we simply pushed hard on them.

Interest in Indiana...and Beyond!

2011-05-05T14:10:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to present Crossroads Kids Club as an outreach opportunity to church leaders in Northwest Indiana. Although the group was a bit smaller and less diverse than the group I met in Milwaukee one week before, it was again very encouraging to me to see and hear the various outreaches with which this group of churches is engaged. I had not anticipated the enjoyment I have found in gathering with a group of missionally-minded church leaders in other cities and interacting with them. Of course, in my head I knew that God is at work all over the nation and the world. But to see it and sense it gives me energy and encouragement. As well, through the new connections, I believe that there will be at least one new Crossroads Kids Club in Indiana next year. One church said that they definitely want to get started, and three or four others are interested in talking some more about it.
Speaking of starting clubs in another state, I had two conversations with people at the Awana building today. (Crossroads' office is inside of Awana's headquarters in Streamwood.) I spoke with a woman in the ministry advancement department who handles calls from Illinois, Wisconsin, and Indiana. She told me that sometimes churches call in looking for an opportunity to impact a school and asked if she could give them Crossroads' contact information. (Of course I told her that I had to think about it and get back to her...NOT! Of course, we would love to talk to those churches!) I also met an Awana missionary in town from the Houston area who was very excited to hear about Crossroads and wants to see churches in Texas catch the vision for school-based outreach as well. All of these things seem to be pointing to the fact that God is doing something in our nation. There are churches out there who desire to impact a school in their community and just need to know how.

Mission by the Numbers

2011-05-04T05:37:00.000-07:00

Some amazing numbers: almost 39,000,000 children are enrolled in nearly 89,000 public elementary schools across America. There are almost four local churches for each public school in the U.S. What an opportunity!

Informational Video

2011-05-03T09:14:00.000-07:00

Crossroads Kids Club was recently blessed to have an informational video made by my friend, Johnny Meier. Here it is:

Q&A For School Administrators, Part 2

2011-05-01T17:19:00.000-07:00

Is Crossroads a safe place?
Crossroads Kids Club works with each local church to ensure proper liability insurance, training for staff, and a thorough background screening process that includes completing an application, reference checks, and a criminal database screening. The final responsibility for meeting these requirements rests with each individual church.

What benefits does having a Crossroads Kids Club at a particular school provide to the students and the school?

Crossroads churches welcome opportunities to build connections to support a school’s mission. You, your staff and your school’s parents are welcome to come and observe the program. As well, our goal is that churches will build relationships with the school staff, students, and parents. In doing so, the churches will see the needs of the school and the families and may well be in a position to help meet those needs. Our aim is not simply for the church to lead a Kids Club and then vanish when it ends but to become engaged as a community partner of the school in supporting its academic mission and in meeting the needs of children holistically.

In the past, staff in the Crossroads Kids Club program have helped in tutoring, mentoring, teaching Junior Achievement, serving popcorn at family movies nights, helping with the PTA “trunk or treat” program, helping with landscaping at a school, and more. Please feel free to communicate any specific needs or ideas to your Crossroads team leader at any time. We love to serve!

I’m concerned about getting in trouble because of a partnership with a religious organization. What about the separation of church and state?

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled very specifically about how schools should relate to groups like Crossroads (Good News v. Milford). The Court has determined that schools must be religiously neutral. In other words, the fact that a group is religious or secular cannot be the basis for discriminating against nor working with a group. Similar groups and programs must be treated the same without regard to a particular religious viewpoint. Essentially, this means that Crossroads should be treated the same as Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Big Brothers and Sisters, and other character-formation programs and clubs. The essence of the club (character formation) and not the viewpoint (Christian) is the issue with regard to how after school groups led by outside organizations are treated by public schools.

One final note on this point is that Crossroads’ religious instruction is done after school and is completely voluntary and at the parents’ sole discretion. Crossroads recruits parents to sign up children and is not seeking to allow young children to choose for themselves if they wish to participate.

Are the other public school administrators with whom I could speak about their experiences with Crossroads?

Absolutely! We would love to connect you with other educational leaders who can share their positive experiences in working with Crossroads.

I have more questions. How can I get them answered?

For questions pertaining to the Crossroads Kids Club program in general and to separation of church and state issues, please feel free to contact Crossroads Kids Club at 224-653-0411 or contact@crossroadskidsclub.com. If you have detail questions about the possibility of holding a club at your particular school, then please contact the sponsoring church’s Crossroads Kids Club team leader.

Q&A For School Administrators, Part 1

2011-04-30T07:50:00.000-07:00

I am working on writing a brochure or fact sheet that we can give to school principals and other administrators to tell them about Crossroads Kids Club and answer questions they might have. I have listed seven questions that they may have and written an answer for each one. In the interest of keeping my blog posts short, I will paste the first two questions and answers into this post and add the others in the days to come. I would be grateful for any feedback on the content of this brochure as well as suggestions of what other questions administrators might have.

Crossroads Kids Club

Information for Public School Administrators

What is Crossroads?

Crossroads Kids Club is a recognized 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization providing program materials and support to churches wishing to implement after-school, faith-based clubs inside of public elementary schools. The Crossroads Kids Club program is designed to teach good character and positive life skills to children.

A typical Crossroads Kids Club meets for 90 minutes once per week right after school and is open to students in the school on a first-come, first-served basis up to the club’s capacity (which depends on available space and staff). Using music, crafts, games, and biblical lessons, Crossroads Kids Club has served public school children since 1998.

What does Crossroads teach the children?

Crossroads aims to teach children three main things: First, God can be trusted in all circumstances in life. The problems facing many children today are potentially overwhelming. We believe that a confidence in the love and care of God helps students to navigate through life and to rise above their circumstances. Second, Crossroads teaches children that it is important to treat others as they would want to be treated themselves. Crossroads aims to provide a safe environment for children to be who they are and affirms the dignity and worth of each child. We also desire that children learn to treat others with respect all the time, not just when they are at a club. The third main thing we desire for children to know is how to solve problems and make wise choices in various situations.

Mission in Milwaukee

2011-04-29T15:20:00.000-07:00

On Wednesday this week, I got to meet a great group of church leaders in Milwaukee. Leaders from eight different churches gathered for lunch to share what they are doing to reach out to children in their communities and to learn about Crossroads. It was a very diverse group of churches with an Evangelical Free Church, a United Methodist Church, three different kinds of Lutheran churches, a baptist church, a non-denominational church, and a Reformed church in attendance. What was very encouraging to me was to hear the heart that these leaders have for reaching their city. I asked the group to write down on sticky notes what ministries they had for children currently (one ministry per note). Ministries that were outwardly focused were to go on pink notes, and inwardly-focused ministries were to be written on yellow notes. I expected that there would be far more yellow notes on the wall, but I was wrong! These churches are actively reaching out to kids. Some were already doing things in or with public schools. I learned a lot from this experience, and I think I will have some new friends from this day as well. Four of the churches expressed interest in working with Crossroads next year!

Crossroads as a "Holistic" Ministry

2011-04-26T12:03:00.000-07:00

Recently, someone suggested that Crossroads is not a holistic ministry because our focus is on sharing the Good News of Jesus. I want to speak to that for a moment and suggest that Crossroads is the tip of the spear of a holistic ministry. For any Christian ministry to claim to be holistic in its approach, it must begin with the transformation of a person's heart by the Holy Spirit. If we begin by trying to meet educational, emotional, or physical needs but do so in a way that disconnects those needs from our faith in Jesus, we are not acting holistically. We have created a false dichotomy.

I believe that once a person's heart is changed by Jesus (the spiritual needs being met), that person is much more motivated and open to change in the economic, emotional, social, and academic parts of their life. Therefore, I believe that Crossroads is right on target to start by aiming at the spiritual needs of children and families. I also believe that we cannot end there but should make needs holistically. My vision is that by establishing Crossroads clubs in schools, churches will see firsthand the academic, social, and material needs of the children and families in their community and will begin to meet those needs as the Lord directs and resources allow.

For my part, I just returned a little bit ago from serving as a Junior Achievement volunteer in a sixth grade classroom. I am teaching the sixth graders about international trade. I hope that my actions communicate to the school and the children that I care about their education and what the school's agenda is (because I do!). However, I think it is backwards to start with meeting academic needs to the exclusion of spiritual needs. The spiritual needs take priority and then the other needs can be met as we get to know people right where they are.

The School Has Collected All the Kids

2011-04-19T09:46:00.000-07:00

   A couple weeks ago, I was speaking with a children's pastor from California, and he was talking about the opportunity to have a Bible-based club inside of a public elementary school. He said something to the effect of, "The school has already collected all the kids in one place and all we have to do is go there." So often, churches spend major money trying to attract children and families into their church's on-site programs. Sometimes these efforts meet with a measure of success, but in general it takes a lot of time, effort, and money to reach new families and get them to a church-based program. Kids Club gives churches the opportunity to "take the show on the road"--to go to where the kids are and meet them there. This is far less expensive and much easier to do.
   In Luke 14, Jesus tells the Parable of the Great Banquet. He sends servants out to invite guests to the dinner party (the Kingdom of God). The ones originally invited reject the invitation, but then the master sends them out again to go into the highways and byways and invite them to come in. I like that story because it tells us that we need to go into places where we often don't naturally go to announce the Good News of hope in Jesus. Sometimes though we get so focused on those who "should" be coming in that we forget to go out to the highways and byways.
   Crossroads Kids Club gives churches the opportunity to go to the highways and byways and to interact with children, families, and educational leaders that they otherwise might not ever meet. The schools have collected all the kids. Now let's go to them.

How to Promote Your School-Based Club

2011-04-15T14:42:00.000-07:00

   This week someone asked me (again) how we promote our Crossroads Kids Clubs to the students. Since this has become a common question, I thought I would address it here in my blog. First off, it is seldom a problem that a club gets limited by a lack of student interest. Generally, you will run out of staff or space first. Nonetheless, it is necessary to get the word out to parents and students about your club. There are several ways to accomplish this.
   One of the best ways to inform parents of your club is to send home a flyer through the school. In many cases, schools will distribute flyers from outside groups. As with the use of space, their policies about distribution of literature cannot discriminate against a group based on its religious viewpoint. So, you should have equal access to distribute flyers (that is to say the same access as all other groups would have).
   If the school does not allow the distribution of flyers, then there are several other things you might consider trying. One method that has worked very well is to stand outside (off school property) and to hand out helium balloons and flyers to the kids as they leave school. Before choosing this method, check with your local municipality as some towns have ordinances restricting the distribution of literature on public land. If that is the case in your town, you can still hand out flyers from a strategically-positioned piece of private property with the owner's permission. The best way to hand out flyers after school is to get a large and diverse group of volunteers to come and help with this task. Have everyone in your group wear the same t-shirt and a name tag. If there are parents around, introduce yourself to them and tell them what you are doing. The best time to hand flyers out this way is the day before your club is set to launch.
   Other ways in which we have promoted clubs are by going door-to-door and speaking to parents and by getting a mailing list of families in the school and mailing them a flyer. In some cases, the school directory may be a matter of public record and then you could build your mailing list from that. Once your club launches, you can give a stack of flyers to the students who come so that they can invite their friends. No matter a school's policies about the distribution of literature by outside groups, students at the school have a legal right to hand out literature to their peers during non-instructional times (e.g., before school, after school, at lunch). I hope this post helps you think through some options for promoting your Kids Club.

Kingdom Connections

2011-04-14T09:32:00.000-07:00

   Yesterday morning I met with a friend, Tom Burns. We talked about a lot of different things, but one topic was the importance of building relational networks--making kingdom connections. I have a new friend, Rich Baker, who is an attorney in Chicago. Rich has been tremendously helpful in connecting me to some people in ministry who might have ideas for me or a particular interest in Crossroads and the vision that the Lord has given us. In fact, yesterday I had lunch with Rich and two other people to whom he introduced me.
   I value these sorts of connections (and the "connectors," like Rich and Tom) who can help to introduce me to other people that I do not yet know. There is so much value in meeting new people serving the Lord in both diverse and similar contexts. For one thing, meeting them and hearing their stories helps me to see things in my own life and ministry from a new perspective. In other words, it is an important tool for evaluation and reflection. In the second place, making these connections can lead to mutual service for kingdom impact. There may be ways that I can serve these new people that I meet to help them in what God has called them to. As well, some of these people may become pray-ers who will pray for me and for Crossroads' ministry. Another benefit to connecting with others is that it makes me more aware of what is going on so that I might connect others to one another. For example, I may find a church for whom Crossroads model is simply not a fit. Perhaps the church has other ideas about how they want to serve and reach out. By having a network of people and ministries that I know, I might be able to help connect that church to a person or ministry that would be a better fit for them.
   I am not naturally a "connector" like Rich, but I am learning to be because it has such tremendous value not only to Crossroads Kids Club but, I believe, to Jesus' mission here on earth.

Arne Duncan on Community Partnerships

2011-04-13T06:45:00.000-07:00

Check out what Secretary of Education has to say about community involvement with schools. Because of laws pertaining to viewpoint discrimination, the doors are open to churches on the same terms as other community-based non-profit organizations.

Snacks as a Way to Connect with Parents

2011-04-12T05:50:00.000-07:00

For many years we have provided snacks for the children at our clubs because they are generally coming to us right after school and are a bit hungry at that point of the day. For a year or two I tried to eliminate the snack to save money, but eventually we saw that it was an important part of club. Not only did a snack help to raise the children's blood sugar level, but I found that it served another function: sharing food together builds community. Sitting around and eating with others helps to build relationships, and this is a very important part of what we are trying to do.

Next year (at some of our clubs at least), I plan to try scheduling parent volunteers to provide snacks for the students each week. While I am sure that this will produce some complications, I think it will accomplish two important things. First, and most importantly, it will allow us to include and connect with parents in another way. Second, it will spread the cost of the snacks out to the various participating families and reduce the overall cost to the church running the club. Third, it produces cooperation and a healthy inter-dependence with the parents and the club leaders.
A simple way to find parent volunteers to make or provide snacks would be to add a check box to the club registration form, which would allow the parent to indicate that they are interested in helping in this way. Then a club volunteer could make a snack schedule for the year and distribute it to the parents who said they were willing to help in this way. Finally, the club volunteer could make a reminder call to the parent volunteer assigned to a given week just to be sure that they have remembered.

Tickets as a Tool for Managing Behavior

2011-04-11T12:52:00.000-07:00

The tickets can be placed
behind a child's name tag in
a plastic sleeve like these.

Last week in San Jose, I learned a lot of things by observing a church-sponsored, school-based club of another Kids Club ministry. One of the things that I especially liked was how they used tickets to manage and modify behavior at club. When a student was doing something appropriate and positive, a leader might choose to give that child a ticket. The child would put the ticket inside the plastic pouch that housed their name tag (behind the name tag so that you could still see their name). The name tags were very much like the ones pictured above.
Conversely, when a student did something that was inappropriate, a leader could take a ticket back from the child. Different clubs used the ticket system differently. Some held a raffle or a mini-raffle each week. Others allowed the children to accumulate the tickets from week to week and then had a "store" every so often at which a child could use their tickets to "buy" things. Either way the system really seemed to work well in a Kids Club context. I plan to use it in some of our clubs this next year.

Managing Your Space (Picnic Style!)

2011-04-08T06:26:00.001-07:00

Yesterday I visited a Kids Club Consultants club in northern California, and I learned a number of things about club management, which I hope to share via this blog in the days ahead. Here is the first tip: make small group like a picnic! Each small group leader brings an old blanket. The children sit on the blanket around their leader. This simple technique for managing space accomplishes a number of things. First, it keeps the children close in proximity to the leader, which helps keep the overall volume in the room down. The proximity also helps keep the focus of the students on the leader. Another benefit of the blanket system is that students know exactly where they should be. They start out in small groups and do their attendance-taking right there on the blanket. When a child comes in he or she knows exactly where to go. Finally, I think the blanket also creates a sense of belonging. Each child in that group belongs on that blanket, and they feel included and wanted. It is a simple idea--and yet brilliant (like most simple ideas).

We Were Just There

2011-04-03T06:37:00.000-07:00

Last night, Adriana and I had the privilege of worshipping at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California. I have heard so much from and about Rick Warren over the years that I was excited to be in Orange County and have the opportunity to see the ministry at Saddleback. One of the things that really stood out to me was how plain and simple everything was. The buildings and the technology did not strike me as the latest and greatest of everything. It was very functional, and it was adequate. The worship service was the same--not a lot of frills or "extras." Personally, I appreciated this very much, and I believe that it is because they have committed to spend their money on people in need and the advance of the gospel as opposed to the fanciest buildings or technology.

Anyway, as I was sitting there among the thousands of people at this worship service, I was thinking about Rick Warren's story of planting Saddleback. He did things many other church planters have done. He knocked on some doors and sent out some letters, but the reality is that God blessed those efforts in ways far beyond what the vast majority of church planters ever experience. Thinking about this reminded me of something I heard a gentleman from India share at an Awana ministry meeting a few weeks ago. He was on Awana's team in India, and someone asked him something about what it was like to see the tremendous growth of Awana in India. I may not have his exact words right, but what I remember him saying was, "God was doing something, and we were just there." I think that is what happened with Rick Warren and Saddleback. God was doing something, and Rick was just there.
As we are embarking on the adventure of attempting to see the gospel shared in every public elementary school in America, I realize that we can work very hard and probably even achieve some limited success. But what if "God was doing something"? I want to be like this gentleman from India whose name I don't recall--and like Rick Warren--in the place where God is doing something. Then I can ride the wave of what God is doing and worship him. At then end of the day I can say, "I was just there."

Kingdom Connections

2011-03-30T06:37:00.000-07:00

   Yesterday, I spoke on the phone with someone who I hope becomes a new friend, Bev Daily. Bev leads a ministry in San Jose, California, called Kids Club Consultants, Inc. I had been looking for any other ministries that are working specifically to equip churches to engage with schools to impact communities, and until this week I had not found any others. On Monday, my friend and U.S. Ministries Executive Director at Awana, Richard Yandle, handed me a business card for a children's pastor at Central Christian Church in San Jose. The pastor's name is Ray, and Richard had met him at the National Children's Pastor's Convention in San Diego a couple weeks ago. Ray had shared with Richard that their church was involved in some school-based outreach ministry, which is why Richard gave me Ray's card.
   I called Ray, and he told me about Kids Club Consultants and Bev Daily. He spoke so highly of them, and gave me their phone number. Indeed, what I learned is that Bev has been doing nearly exactly what Crossroads is aiming to do: equipping churches to share the Good News of Jesus in public schools. Their ministry is currently serving roughly 40 churches who are in about 40 schools--all in northern California. When I spoke with Bev, she mentioned that they would like to expand geographically. For my part, I am far less concerned about our name (Crossroads Kids Club) or who gets the credit than seeing a gospel club in every school in America, and so I am very excited to try to find ways that we might work together toward this kingdom purpose. I am heading out to San Jose next week for a one-day visit to see their Kids Clubs in action and to meet with Bev and hear their organization's story. You can check out their web site @ http://www.kidsclubconsultants.org/ And I would appreciate your prayers for my visit.
   It is truly amazing to me how when God wants to do something (like, for example, get his Church to engage with kids at schools) he may give the same vision to multiple people in different locations. To me this sort of thing is amazing. As well, hearing about Kids Club Consultants encourages me because they have been successful pursuing the vision that Crossroads has just begun to move toward.

I'm Just Not That Important

2011-03-29T12:02:00.000-07:00

   Yesterday, I went out to lunch with three new friends. Two of them are attorneys in downtown Chicago, and the third leads another ministry with children. We had some great conversation, and I want to reflect on a part of our discussion. We shared that we have a propensity to be "connected" all the time. We seemed to be e-mail and cell phone addicts. It is hard for us to shut off the computer, silence the phone, and actually unplug from our highly-connected lives. I think that this is not just us either but many, many people in our society.
   For my part, I am practically glued to my Android phone (until the battery dies anyway, which turns out to be a horrible flaw in Android phones...ARGH!), and my iPad is usually not far away. The results are that I have a difficult time giving the people around me the most important thing I can give them--my focused attention. As well, it is hard to rest when always thinking about checking e-mails, text messages, and voicemails. Certainly, God did not design our lives to be lived at such a frantic pace, but it is so hard to slow down and to unplug.
   In our conversation yesterday I shared that I think for me the "need" to be connected is really more about feeling important. When I look and see that I got X number of messages in the last hour, I feel like people need me. They want my input, and they are valuing me. This is twisted thinking and in reality a lack of faith in God. When I shut off my phone, computer, iPad, wireless router, etc. I am unplugging from the outside world, which in the first place is an expression of faith because it demonstrates that I am confident that God has things under control without me constantly monitoring them! And in the second place, it allows me to engage and be fully present with the family or friends I am with in that moment. The bottom line is that I am not as important as I think I am. People don't actually need me--they need God. So, here and now I resolve to be better about leaving my technology off in the evenings and on Sundays!

Engaging High School Students as Effective Leaders, Part 2

2011-03-25T11:21:00.000-07:00

The other day I wrote about my plan to help build community among the high school volunteers at Crossroads and to get them to be more focused on the younger kids while at club. Last night was our first night of having a "family dinner" with this group of high school students before heading over to a local Kids Club. We threw the plans for dinner together at the last minute and so ended up just ordering pizza. A couple of the adult leaders from the club also joined us. I remembered that we used to have a meal together with ministry volunteers years ago, and I had forgotten how much fun it was. We had a lot of laughter and I personally enjoyed the time. I was also able to tell the high schoolers that we were going to need them to be leaders going forward. I made sure that they each had a copy of the lesson for that night so that they would be better prepared, and after our time together at my house, we rode together to the school.
Not only was the dinner time a lot of fun, but the Kids Club that followed went great. The high schoolers were more engaged with the younger kids than they had been in the past, and I was really grateful for their help. Bottom line: high schoolers are great kids club leaders! They just need the encouragement and confidence that comes from community to step up and step out.

The Importance of Boundaries

2011-03-22T15:06:00.000-07:00

   12 days ago I was helping at one of the worst Crossroads Kids Club sessions that I have been at in a long time. The students were not listening and our staff had pretty much thrown up their hands in desperation. This particular club session culminated in one boy punching another. The one who received the punch fought back vigorously, and one of our volunteers had to physically remove him from the first boy and restrain him. Thankfully neither of the boys was seriously hurt.
   The next morning I called the school's principal to talk about what had happened. Working through this issue, I was reminded of the importance of having and maintaining basic boundaries or ground rules. It is essential to control the environment and access to your club, but we had been letting children attend club without permission slips and then we had been driving them home after the club time ended because we couldn't seem to get the parents to be involved at any level. Our intentions were good--to allow these kids from homes where the parents seemed very uninvolved to be welcomed and accepted at Crossroads. But the result was that we lowered our basic standards, and gradually the children's behavior deteriorated.
   So, we went back to the basics. The principal made an automated call to the school community and reminded the parents that children needed to be picked up by a parent when after-school programs end. The school also helped us by distributing permission slips to the students who had not returned them and ID cards (which we made) to the ones who did have permission slips on file. Students were told that they had to bring either the ID card or a signed permission slip in order to be allowed in to Crossroads. When students arrived, I personally made sure that they had one or the other. I also made sure that they had rides arranged before I allowed them into club.
   The result? We lost about 30-40% of the children we had, but we had a great club session last week! The students who were there were engaged and cooperative. They wanted to be there and seemed to be there for the right reasons. A few lessons from this: 1. When you establish boundaries or ground rules for your club, do not change them without thoughtful consideration; 2. We were able to make these changes because of a close relationship and cooperation with the school so maintaining a good relationship with the school is vitally important; 3. Without engaging parents in a Kids Club program, there is not much likelihood that we are going to make much lasting difference in a child's life. We must work as partners with parents even if the parents are not believers. This is hard, but it is best.

Engaging High School Students as Effective Leaders

2011-03-21T14:04:00.000-07:00

   High school students make amazing small group leaders at Kids Clubs for several reasons. First, they are closer in age to the elementary students and so they can relate more easily with the students. Second, the elementary kids look up to high school students as "the big kids" that they want to be. (What elementary kid doesn't want to be 16?) Third, a high school student with average to above-average maturity is very capable of leading an effective small group time or the game time. As well, high school students are available in the after-school hours when many adults are not.
   The trouble with high school students though is that they tend to coagulate. What I mean is that they don't naturally mix in and participate with the elementary kids. I am involved in one particular club that has at least three high school students regularly involved in the leadership. Since they have been tending to hang together instead of mixing it up with the kids, I am planning to begin inviting this group of high schoolers over to my house for dinner each week before club. (This particular club meets in a school at 6:30 p.m.) This way they get a chance to hang out with each other and build community before going to hang out with the elementary kids. I get the opportunity to share life together with the high school students as we share a meal together and then we get to do ministry together as we serve the younger kids. As well, over dinner we can talk about any issues relative to the club and they can receive coaching in any areas where it might be needed.