Few children and young people go to church. But most are in school – and many are open to hearing about faith. Revd Dr Mark Griffiths, SU’s new Mission Resources Director, wants to encourage every church to take up the amazing opportunities there are for revealing Jesus.
Mark, who has served on SU’s Council and Board, is a seasoned leader with a heart for sharing Jesus with children and young people. He has led New Wine’s children and family ministry, authored books on evangelism to children and young people and has been a youth and children’s worker himself.
He is passionate about schools ministry, having led over 3,000 assemblies! ‘There’s an entire generation that has never heard about Jesus, and schools give us the opportunity to share the good news with children and young people who won’t hear it any other way.’
But sometimes churches hold back from going into schools because they assume there are lots of barriers. Below, Mark challenges some common myths and why churches should give schools ministry a go:
Schools won’t let you share Jesus:
‘There are great opportunities to Connect with pupils and help them Explore faith, although you may need to cover Respond and Grow outside of the school environment, for example in a youth group or after-school club.'
Schools don’t welcome church involvement:
‘Legally, schools must hold a daily act of broadly Christian collective worship. But teachers are trained to teach classes of 30 pupils, not lead assemblies for several hundred children and fellow teachers! Besides, it’s challenging if they aren’t Christian. So, a church that presents themselves well is a real gift to schools.
‘Plus, schools are desperate for help from the wider community, including the church – with reading, running lunch clubs, helping with school trips, Parent Teachers Associations, being a school governor.'
You don’t make quality connections with children by doing assemblies:
‘You do, if you do assemblies regularly – and invites to your lunch or after-school clubs, youth outreach project and holiday clubs will be better received. It’s all about relationship!’
Church schools are no different from other schools:
‘They can and should have a distinctive Christian ethos. But that requires the right headteacher – and given that school governors appoint headteachers, there’s one good reason to become one!’
You have to be young and energetic to engage with schools:
‘Schools want people who are consistent, faithful, dependable and have a right heart. People who genuinely love the children they work with are much more valuable than those who can present a polished performance at the front of a school assembly.’
You’ve got to launch schools’ initiatives at the start of the academic year:
‘September is the worst time! Schools are catching up on admin and settling in new pupils. Try the months leading up to Christmas or Easter; and in the summer term you could do some Mission Through Sport, or support children transitioning to secondary school.’
We’re here to help
We’re keen to help every church wanting to start schools ministry – our Mission Enablers can provide advice, and we offer training and a great range of mission resources with exciting plans to develop more. Please pray with us that churches will seek to connect with pupils at their local school and journey with them year-round as they explore faith for themselves.