My name is Mark Robb. I have a wife and two kids. I serve as an elder at Christ Community Church, and also teach Sunday school on Saturday evenings. I am the Assistant State Director for Child Evangelism Fellowship of Florida. For the past four years I've served as the local director here in Volusia County and only recently moved to the state position. I wanted to take this time to share with you, the ministry of Child Evangelism Fellowship and its relationship to Christ Community Church.
CEF and why it’s important
Child Evangelism Fellowship is a Bible-centered worldwide organization composed of born-again believers whose purpose is to evangelize boys and girls with the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, disciple them in the Word of God and establish them in a Bible believing church for Christian living. It's the largest ministry to children in the world and was started in 1937. In 2006 over 8 million children were reached with the Gospel of Jesus Christ, with over 2 million praying to receive Christ as Savior. To understand the importance of Child Evangelism Fellowship, you need only know a few statistics. Eighty percent of America's children do not attend church. Eighty-five percent of Christians trust the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior before the age of 14. One third of the world's population is under the age of 15. Not only do children represent the largest mission field, they also represent the most fruitful mission field. Matthew 9:37-38 says …The harvest truly is plenteous, but the laborers are few; Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth laborers into his harvest.
My work with CEF
As a full-time missionary my work with Child Evangelism Fellowship centers around our purpose statement: to evangelize boys and girls with the Gospel of Jesus Christ, to disciple them in the Word of God, and to establish them in a church for Christian living. Our focus is the 80% of America's children, who do not attend church. We use two core ministries to reach that group of children. The first and primary ministry is the Good News Club. Over 3,400 Good News Clubs are held across the nation reaching more than 119,000 students each week, whether meeting off campus during school hours or on campus after school, these clubs provide opportunities for children in the public schools to hear the Gospel and learn truth from God's Word. Right here in Volusia County, we are currently in 22 of the 48 public elementary schools with an after-school Good News Club. During the summer we conduct 5-Day Clubs using teenage summer missionaries, commonly referred to as “CYIA” Christian Youth In Action. These clubs are taught across the county, in many locations. We meet at YMCAs, Boys and Girls Clubs, day care centers, PAL centers, backyards and parks across the county.
How it relates and is connected to CCC
Christ Community Church partners with Child Evangelism Fellowship in many areas. They support me as a full-time missionary. They have adopted Longstreet elementary with a Good News Club and are looking into adopting a second club at Palm Terrace elementary. Many Sunday school workers have taken Teaching Children Effectively Level 1 at the Children's Ministry Institute with a couple completing Level 2. Many years they have supplied a teenage summer missionary to participate in Christian Youth In Action doing 5-Day Clubs during the summer. This year, we are fortunate to have Brooke Geno as a senior teenage summer missionary. This fall Christ Community Church will offer a Good News Club that will meet on Wednesday evenings on site. We also will be offering training on-site during the summer and fall to ensure all children's workers have proper training. Every year in August, Christ Community Church hosts our volunteer workshop where every worker in the county comes to be screened, updated and trained before the Good News Clubs start in Volusia County elementary schools.
How a person might be involved with CEF through CCC
As you can see there are many opportunities to volunteer with Child Evangelism Fellowship here at Christ Community Church. On Sunday, July 20th, we will conduct a demonstration of a Good News Club after the second service. I would like to invite you to attend. I thank God every day that I am involved with a church that takes reaching children seriously. God’s word says in Luke 17:2 “It were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he cast into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones”. Our actions toward children are important, and the actions of this church speak much louder than any words I could place in this article. Thank you Christ Community Church for all that you currently do, and will do, for the children of Volusia County.
