To be in the world, but not of it

This concept is challenging enough at the best of times! However, recently I’ve been thinking about this specifically in the context of the schools work NYfC does. As a keyworker, I spend a lot of time in lessons and basically play the role of a teaching assistant. A lot of our schools already have great learning support departments, so the challenge for us is to be different.

​Although I’m sure we’d all like to think that our lives naturally shine with Jesus, the reality is that in such a regulated environment, this light is often a little dimmer. So, the question is, how can we be relevantly different? How can I be in the school, but not of it? Well, rather surprisingly, the answer to this question actually came in the form of an offhand comment by a teacher.…

‘You don’t believe in lost causes’

And that’s it. That’s how we’re different. In an environment so heavily tailored towards getting pupils through formal assessments, there is very little scope to work with those pupils who simply lack the inclination to achieve their potential. Of course this is a sweeping statement, and there are many members of staff within schools to whom that doesn’t apply. However, as an external organisation, we have a unique freedom to speak truth into the lives of these young people.

​Jesus taught us about the importance of pursuing the lost. I’ve always thought of that in terms of the spiritually lost. But isn’t it just as important to pursue the academically lost. To pursue those who have simply been written off as a ‘lost cause’. And by showing these young people that they have real potential, and that their futures are just as valuable as everyone else’s, maybe the light of Jesus will shine a little brighter in our schools.

Rebecca is key worker in South Notts.
rebecca@nottinghamyfc.co.uk