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Public school students hear gospel
Laura Moore, BR Editorial Aide
June 09, 2011
5 MIN READ TIME

Public school students hear gospel

Public school students hear gospel
Laura Moore, BR Editorial Aide
June 09, 2011

With the school year coming to a close, 103 student’s lives

have been changed forever. 2011 will mark the year that they came to know Jesus

Christ through a program they signed up for at — believe it or not — their

public school.

Out of 450 students, 103 have made professions of faith

since four Released Time Bible Education programs were started in February in Bladen

County. Four programs in four

months have opened doors for 450 students to hear about the Bible.

A multi-state organization called School Ministries

(www.schoolministries.org) partnered with Jason Williams, pastor of Bethel

Baptist Church

in Dublin and North

Carolina coordinator for the ministry, to begin its

first Released Time Bible Education programs in North

Carolina this year. Williams has helped with this

ministry in other states as well.

What is a Released Time Bible Education (www.releasedtime.org)

program?

Volunteers can offer the program to students who will leave

school grounds to study the Bible during their school hours. Students must have

their parents’ permission to participate, and volunteers transport students

from the school to the program’s location off campus. At Bladenboro Primary

where Williams has been active leading a program, students are transported in

buses to Dublin First

Baptist Church

for their Bible lesson, then transported back for the rest of their regular

school day.

There are no laws in North Carolina

that prohibit a program like this from starting as long as it is conducted off

school grounds and has the school board’s approval. Other factors that a

program needs include transportation for the students, a location for the Bible

education time, liability insurance, volunteers and church community support.

Usually, schools will allow students to have Released Time Bible Education

during their elective or enrichment class time.

“To have a great work we have to have great volunteers,”

Williams said.

Each volunteer serves in an area compatible with their

desire and giftedness whether it be driving, teaching, counseling, keeping

attendance records, etc. “We look to make sure we are putting our volunteers in

the right places,” he said.

With an organization like School Ministries, churches can

find the resources they need to get a program started.

Program leaders can find curriculum as well as valuable

advice and support on how to run a program. Williams describes the Bible

education curriculum as a character based study that ties the roots of the

character back to Jesus. “Our first goal was to establish the character of

obedience,” he said. Through the story of Adam and Eve’s disobedience in

Genesis, “we started there, interjecting the gospel.”

And through these Bible lessons, scripture is finding its

way into the homes of students. “The church is being able to take the gospel

home to families in a quicker legal way,” Williams said.

“If I reach one unchurched kid for Christ, and they go home

and reach their family, then our work has multiplied,” he said. Many of the

students that are being reached through Released Time are kids from families

that have no church home or involvement. When students first sign up to

participate, they are asked if they have a church. For students who are

unchurched, it’s important to start connecting them with a church near them.

“We have a guy at church who started coming for his kids. Then,

he realized he needed it (Christ) too,” said Williams about the church he

pastors.

While every situation is different and costs will vary

depending on many factors for each program, overall “cost is very inexpensive

for the opportunity,” Williams said.

“The cost is much less than what it would cost a church” to

run a program on it’s own.

So much of the success that School Ministries has seen in Bladen

County since February is a result

of the nature of the opportunity. There are 1.3 million public school students

in North Carolina.

The nature of the program is about bringing Christ to a

central location and community where there is the potential to reach entire

families, said Williams.

“When you can win kids for Christ you can often win the

family. So, this ministry is for the family,” he said.

Williams and School Ministries, Inc. want to start four new

programs a year in North Carolina

schools as they campaign to raise $100,000 to cover start up costs.

The campaign’s initiative is to find 1,000 people to

contribute $100 each.

While some have contributed $5 and others $500 in the past

couple of months, they are still currently in need of about 880 people.

Williams said, “We take that money and put it into helping

programs start. We help offset the cost so that funds don’t slow the process.”

Contact Jason Williams at (910) 549-0661 or

[email protected].