Greg Collord has been in youth ministry for more than thirty years. In his twelfth year at the Alliance Academy in Quito, Ecuador, he serves as chairman of the Bible Department, coordinator of Christian Service Outreach, and college advisor. He is a graduate of Simpson College,
Redding, CA.
On five Wednesday evenings this past fall, I celebrated with a team of our Alliance Academy high school students as they led more than 125 Ecuadorians to Jesus Christ. In church services? No. In an evangelistic crusade? No. These new believers were brought to the Lord at the Baca Ortiz Hospital, a large state-run medical facility for children in Quito. A few were patients; most were relatives visiting them.
Each school year, this team of about forty students spends many Wednesday evenings visiting wards at Baca Ortiz—with the hospital director’s written permission!—to provide comfort, encouragement, balloons, cookies, Bible-story coloring sheets, crayons, storybooks, and Bibles. Our main purpose is to declare the truth of Jesus as Savior, and thus to lead patients and their visitors to Christ. The response has been amazing! God is working through our faithful students, and through the local churches that follow up with those who respond.
A recent secular education periodical from the United States reported with pleasure that the number of U.S. high school students doing “community service” has increased to about 10 percent. Impressive? Well, I suppose any increase in the number of kids serving others can be celebrated—even when such service is compulsory, as it is in some school systems.
But as I read that report, I reflected on our own situation with thanksgiving: Each year at the Alliance Academy, 75 to 85 percent of our 200-plus high schoolers join Christian Service Outreach (CSO) teams—voluntarily. No credit is offered, and the only “pressure” is from peers. Our kids choose to serve Jesus Christ in Quito and other parts of Ecuador. The children’s hospital team described above is just one of nine CSO groups in operation this year.
CSO has been woven into life at the Alliance Academy for more than thirty years. Back in the sixties, several students decided that, though they were getting much input, they had few opportunities for outreach. So they went into action, developing a ministry team that went out on the streets and witnessed in Spanish.
Since then, CSO has grown to attract most of the high school student body. Our current teams are the following:
- 25:40: “Street-person” outreach, based on Matthew 25:40. Helps feed and clothe some of Quito’s poor, and brings Christ to them as well.
- Atucucho: VBS-style evangelistic ministry to nearly 200 children in a nearby barrio.
- AWANA: Ministry to English-speaking elementary school children, on campus.
- Campana Cocha Clan: Baca Ortiz Children’s Hospital ministry of evangelism, comfort, and encouragement.
- Guardian: “Youth group” mentoring program in English, connecting juniors and seniors in discipling relationships with our middle school students.
- Orphanage: Encouragement and evangelism ministry for unwanted children in and around Quito.
- Solidarity: Prayer and advocacy on behalf of persecuted Christians around the world.
- Spokesmen: Painting murals with biblical themes on the outside walls of churches and other buildings, plus street evangelism.
- Survival English: Teaching of English to our Spanish-speaking staff members, using the English Bible.
There are several clear evidences that the Alliance Academy community strongly believes in the value of CSO. First, the administration budgets generously for the program—$12,000 this year, or more than $70 per student participant. CSO teams are not permitted to charge participation fees, so all willing students may join without financial pressure. Sometimes additional funds come from outside sources; for example, North American church groups have sent funds, and a number of alumni who profited from their experiences in CSO have sent generous, unsolicited gifts. God provides for what He wants accomplished. Second, as the activities calendar is planned, the school keeps Wednesday evenings free so that CSO may have priority. Enthusiastic support for CSO from coaches and other leaders is key to avoiding schedule conflicts. CSO commitment is at the level of sports commitment: If you are on a team, you will “be there!”
A third evidence of people’s strong belief in CSO is that many cooperative teachers plan their academic loads so that students will have less homework on Wednesdays. When possible, Thursdays are test-free, and overnight assignments are fewer on Wednesdays. Fourth, several dozen adults— from both the school and the larger community—sponsor the CSO teams. The key word is sponsor, not lead. Our belief is that the student members will begin as ministers and will develop steadily into leaders. The adult sponsors are on hand to guide them, not to do the ministry for them. Think of it: Thirteen-year-olds are being given a “kick-start” in active ministry, some of them leading people to Jesus for the first time in their lives. At Baca Ortiz Hospital, a fearless freshman boy talked with a doctor, who prayed on the spot to receive Jesus Christ!
Because our CSO program has been successful in so many lives, and because some high schools in the United States now mandate participation in community service, a few have suggested that we make CSO compulsory. We will not. First, some of our students are not believers, and they need the freedom to say no to something called “Christian” service. To compel them to serve would put them into an awkward and even hypocritical position. Second, and more importantly, human nature often resists what is required but embraces what is voluntary—if it has value. Clearly, our students see the worth of our CSO ministries; we do not need to make it mandatory. Indeed, some CSO teams are so popular at sign-up time that their leadership must say no to some students, who are then placed in their second- or third-choice groups. To their credit, almost all students who miss their first choice stay with the program.
During my furlough travels, I have found that many churches in the United States have active youth groups that have a fair amount of biblical input but very little practical output. The occasional “Adventure in Mexico” involves some, though such ministries are one big splash rather than ongoing service. On occasion, church leaders are wise enough to involve their youth in Sunday school teaching, AWANA leadership, and other church ministries. But only a few have community outreaches that are populated and administered chiefly by teenagers. In most churches, adults do all the outreach. I believe they are missing a great opportunity to educate, train, and excite their young people about serving Jesus Christ through practical service.
The Christian school can step into this gap, providing ongoing ministry opportunities that churches may miss. Open doors will be unique in each community, as will the processes; but the overall purposes and results can be the same: to bring spiritually well-fed young men and women into exciting, successful, practical ministry and thus to see people reached for Christ, and the family of God increase in size and in strength.
So, if your school does not have such a program, what’s stopping you?
More Than Community Service: Ministry! 5.3