Having situated the last chair, I look around and begin my mental checklist. Smart board moved and laptop plugged in? Check. All the chairs scattered in every open spot? Check. Snacks opened and ready to go? Check. I take a deep breath and check the time: five minutes to go. Moving to my place by the door, I get ready to greet the 50 elementary school students who will enter the room.
“Lord, help me share your love today.”
I breathe the quick prayer as the principal begins afternoon announcements. I hand out snacks as the students file in. It’s crazy and loud in our tiny library jammed with over 50 kids, but it’s wonderful and exciting! A salty, a sweet, and a juice box later, we begin the countdown that will start our Good News Club at Scranton Elementary.
I am a public school librarian, and I share the gospel with my students every Monday afternoon. Sounds impossible, right? I’m sure you’re thinking my school or district must be “different,” or that it must not be a true public school. Or maybe you think I’m stretching the truth, that I really conduct an after-school program at my church.
It’s true! Along with a group of teachers, I lead a Good News Club meeting right after public school dismisses, on public school grounds, for public school students. What is Good News Club, exactly? Good News Club is a program sponsored by Child Evangelism Fellowship (CEF) that seeks to “meet children where they are” and introduce them to the gospel. Volunteers are trained and provided materials needed to present Bible stories to groups of students whose parents have “opted in,” allowing their child or children to participate. In the first six weeks at our club, five students decided to follow Jesus!
But let me back up; I’m getting ahead of myself. You should hear the whole story.
I attended public elementary school and a Christian middle and high school. My dad: a pastor and construction worker; my mom: a public school teacher. I honestly had a wonderful childhood, not too sheltered but certainly very godly. Looking back, I see God’s hand at work preparing me for each step. I attended Welch College and graduated with a degree to teach English and reading in 6th through 12th grades. After a few years teaching, I completed a master’s degree in library science to become a librarian.
As I began my new career, I began to struggle with the attitude so many Christians have towards public school. I read posts on social media and heard rants about how “they’ve taken all the prayer out of schools.”
I understood the statement. After all, my position as a Christian public school librarian can be a precarious one.
I encounter far too many children’s books praising and normalizing ungodly lifestyles that surely break God’s heart. While I understand the frustration from so many Christians, it also seemed like we could do something better than be “keyboard warriors.”
I was familiar with Good News Club. My grandparents and other family members had been involved with CEF over the years, and I knew the basics. The timing had never worked out for me to really pursue starting a club — or maybe that was just an excuse.
After my dad passed away suddenly, I transferred schools for a fresh start. The impact of his life sat heavily on my shoulders. He was a man who dedicated every moment to serve Christ and others. He never worried about taking on too much; instead, he always told me he was taking away people’s excuses for not following Christ or going to church.
Together podcast and became convicted. The podcast focused on sharing the gospel with your community. It reminded listeners it is easy to be busy doing “church stuff” without really reaching the community. That hit home! I was teaching a Sunday School class, singing in the choir, and organizing church events, but I couldn’t remember the last time I had shared the gospel with someone.
As I began to pray about it, a group came to our church for a concert. The Heath Brothers have a unique ministry: performing in public schools to share the gospel with students. This was the confirmation I needed. (More accurately, the “kick in the pants” I needed!)
Does any of this resonate with you?
Here are the steps I followed to get started. First, I talked with someone who already led a Good News Club. This gave me “boots on the ground” advice and perspective. I learned I needed eight to ten volunteers. Ready to get started (I’ve always been a take-action, think-later person), I talked to my principal and got approval. This is important! It is always best to be on the same page with the administration where you start a club. However, Good News Club is permitted in any public school where any other after-school clubs take place. I applied to Child Evangelism Fellowship and completed the interview and training process. Then I emailed coworkers and asked for volunteers. We all completed the necessary training and planned for our Good News Club. Even better: for the first few weeks, Child Evangelism Fellowship employees came and ran the club to allow us to focus on learning and transportation.
One of the best ways to get students to sign up initially is to have snacks. Not just any snacks, mind you — GOOD snacks! What began with students signing up to get a better afternoon snack quickly turned into them inviting friends because they liked the club so much. My next plan of action is to get my church more involved in the club. We are planning to put Good News Club into the outreach budget. (GOOD snacks are expensive, right, Jon Forrest?) Initially, I am looking for a prayer partner and a snack coordinator. Eventually, I will need more volunteers so my current teacher friends can have a break.
You might be thinking, “But I’m not a teacher, librarian, or school employee.”
Friend, you can kick that excuse to the curb. Most Good News Clubs are organized and run by a group of volunteers from a church. Even if you don’t have any experience teaching a group of kids, you can do it! Good News Club provides everything you need. It might be stressful to start something new and crazy, but you can do anything for an hour, right?
Before you write off the idea, take just a moment to ponder this startling statistic from Good News Club: “After age 19, the probability of accepting Christ drops to just 6%.”
Let’s change the narrative surrounding public schools, one Good News Club at a time!
About the Writer: Hannah Matthews has been a public school
educator for eight years, with three of those years in the elementary school library. She loves working on home improvement projects with her husband, Brent. Together they have one (very) spoiled dog named Opie. Contact Hannah anytime with Good News Club questions at thereadingteacher7@gmail.com.
