Crosstalk: August 3, 2016

Child Evangelism Fellowship is an evangelical, Bible-based ministry that began in 1937. It exists to draw young people between the ages of 5 and 12 to saving faith in Christ, disciple them in the word of God and establish them in the local church. They do this through efforts such as 5-Day Clubs and Good News Clubs. Their desire is to come alongside the local church and help them impact their communities for Christ and they do that not only here in the United States but all around the world. In fact, nationally they are currently in just over 4,500 public elementary schools and around the world last year there were just under 78,000 Good News Clubs held. Overall last year they had the joy of presenting the gospel in face-to-face presentations to just under 20 million children.

How does a youngster become part of a Good News Club? First of all, a flyer goes home so the parents know if their child attends, they will be part of a Bible club. The parents then sign a permission slip indicating their knowledge 

of what the child is joining.

What happens at a Good News Club? These clubs meet after school for about 1 hour and 15 minutes to an hour and a half. The meeting includes a Bible lesson, songs, games, memory verses and a missionary story. It's very interactive with the kids teaching them character and good moral principles with all of these things coming from a Christian and biblical perspective.

About 15 years ago, Liberty Counsel represented CEF and won a case all the way up to the Supreme Court. That case gave CEF the legal standing (equal access) to be in schools just like other groups such as Cub Scouts and other after school programs. In other words, CEF does not receive preferential treatment, but rather, equal treatment.

On July 30th, the Washington Post reported that an after school Satan club could be coming to your child's elementary school. John Luck, project manager of Good News Across America and director of development with Child Evangelism Fellowship, noted that the Satan clubs is the effort of a group of atheists of the Satanic Temple. John believes this is their attempt at a shock tactic in the hope that people will say that the Good News Clubs can't be in schools because they want to be in the schools on the same basis as the Good News Clubs.

In the end, superintendents, principals, parents and children have accepted Good News Clubs. The only people that haven't accepted them are the atheists. According to John, that's not because of their opposition to CEF, but because of their opposition to God, religion and the Bible.