Keep the Faith

In an ACSI (Association of Christian Schools International) blog, a long-time Christian educator conducted in-depth interviews with a group of young Christian adults. Here is a snapshot of some of his conclusions:

• Participants in this study made a personal decision to participate in Christianity during their childhood and considered these experiences—such as choosing to be baptized, talking about the claims of Christ with an adult, or engaging in a spiritual discipline on their own—to be key contributors to current Christian commitment. This reinforces the importance of Christian school teachers discussing the claims of Christ with the children in their classes and of curricula that teach creation, salvation, the resurrection, and the accuracy of the Bible.
• Participants professed appreciation for Christians in their childhood who treated them kindly. This included guidance from Christians other than parents, Christian peers who asked for friendship, being prayed for by someone, and being comforted by a Christian during hard times. Participants also pointed to close relationships with Christian peers and teachers who were Christians as important in developing their own faith commitments.
• One particularly poignant story shared by a participant involved a special chapel held by his Christian school after September 11, 2001, at which the school principal shared that God was still “in charge” and would be there for them during this tragedy. The study participant stated that he was proud to be at a Christian school, because while the rest of the world was unsure about God and His goodness, his school was declaring this truth.

The mission of discipleship training at Crosshill Christian School is simple in its purpose and quite layered in its practices. Through thousands of hours of instruction and interaction, campus mentors invest in the faith transformation of their student body. A key component is integrating and applying faith through a Biblical worldview to the culture and circumstances of their lives. The long-term vision is to guide students toward the truth and value of a permanent conviction in the gospel of Jesus Christ. Building on the faith foundation in the home, we desire students to solidify their faith commitment, making it their own, so that God’s design for authentic belief and subsequent fruit flourishes into adulthood.