Quick. Think of three people in Christian ministry – the first three that come to your mind. Odds are, you thought of a pastor or two and maybe a missionary. Here’s who you probably didn’t pick as a “person in Christian ministry:” a teacher at a Christian school.
A few weeks ago at The Bridge, my pastor put the name of a missionary couple on the screen for corporate prayer. I was shocked, because I know them well: it was Ron and Julie Hiensman. Julie, who was once my track coach, now serves as the superintendent of the high school I went to in Taiwan. And as we prayed, tears were streaming down my cheeks. Why? Because that school changed my life.
Christian education isn’t a ministry of weekly touchpoints. It happens seven to ten hours a day, five days a week, for 13+ years. That’s over 18,000 of a child's best waking hours!
At a Christian school, you can’t put on your “Sunday best” and pretend you’ve got it together. Your teachers and peers have a front row seat to your character and work daily to help mold it.
Christian schooling is about being able to learn from mistakes. You can’t avoid them. Wrong answers. Poor choices. Stupid comments. And it’s the best place to make those mistakes, because you experience real consequences and you’re surrounded by incredible life coaches to help you through it.
Because Christian schooling is so oriented to daily life, its ministry is not just about advice; it’s about walking beside you and showing you (not just telling you!) how to live, even in the most mundane parts of your life like eating lunch and doing a math problem.
Christian ed is not a 1:1 therapy session. It’s community-oriented, helping those it ministers to learn to follow Jesus in the context of others, preparing students to be good neighbors.
Christian schooling isn’t just needs-based, providing a resource in one area of life. It’s holistic, focusing on every part of your person, from your physical body to your mind to your emotions to your soul.
It’s also forward-looking, not just break-fix, helping you see and fulfill your potential in many areas of your life, ultimately shaping you toward your vocational calling.
Christian education is a ministry like no other, and we often fail to recognize its vital role in the kingdom of God. Christian school kids are challenged, coached, trained, and molded in a holistic ministry environment unlike any other. Christian schools are a workshop for “God’s workmanship” (Eph. 2:10).
What other kind of Christian ministry does such real-life, intentional, all-encompassing, multi-year, holistic, and compelling ministry in the lives of others?
In fact, shouldn’t Christian school teachers be some of the first people we think of when it comes to meaningful Christian ministry?
A Christian school – its programs and its teachers – transformed my life. And right now through the Christian ministry being done a Christian Heritage Academy, 430 lives are also being transformed through what God is doing at our school.
What other kind of Christian ministry does such real-life, intentional, all-encompassing, multi-year, holistic, and compelling ministry in the lives of others?
If you’re looking for this kind of transformation in your kids’ lives, you’re missing out; consider sending your kids here.
If your kids are already being transformed by what God is doing at CHA, have you told others? Spread the word.
If you see the fruit of CHA’s ministry in the lives of your CHA graduates, do you continue to support us through your giving? If not, consider it.
Support us. Pray for us. God is at work at CHA.
—J.T.
