An artist’s rendition in an RBP Primary Sunday School teaching picture shows Paul and Barnabas (in red headdress) showing compassion to a lame man and healing him.
The Christian missionary and servant we know as Barnabas was really named Joseph (Acts 4:36). Barnabas, his nickname, means “son of encouragement,” which reveals a lot about him.
Today, enlisting a “Barnabas team” is one way you can dispel a misconception that may exist in your church—a misconception that views your children’s ministry, particularly Kids4Truth Clubs, as a babysitting service with some games, Bible verses, and Christian songs thrown in. When people can see for themselves that you have a quality program teaching children about God, they will value children’s ministry more. An effective way to reach this goal is to have a secret Barnabas team; that is, a team of adults in your church who will encourage children outside their own families for the Kids4Truth Clubs’ year.
Setup of the Secret Barnabas Program
Here are three suggestions for establishing a Secret Barnabas program in your church.
First, decided how you will initiate this program. Choose whom you will recruit to be a Barnabas. I recommend that you individually and privately approach adults you know well rather than issuing a public appeal.
Second, spell out how involved you will ask the adults to be. Specify their responsibilities for the year. Here is a list of possible responsibilities:
- Intentionally and regularly comment on the child’s patches (on the Kids4Truth Clubs standard or cinch bag).
- Intentionally and regularly ask the child to recite something he or she learned to earn a patch. This recitation will aid retention of the memory work.
- Intentionally and regularly pray for the child’s salvation, spiritual growth, physical safety, family, needs, and the like.
Also decide if you will ask these adults to financially sponsor the children they’ve chosen to encourage. Some churches have requested that these adults cover the cost for the child to be in the program for the year. Other churches take a scholarship offering, which has allowed them to reach out to more children in their communities. Over the years, churches have contacted me to say something like, “We need more materials, as more scholarships came in than children. Now we can reach out to our community and add more kids.”
Third, generate a list of children to be encouraged and pair each with a secret Barnabas. Keep this list private.
- On the list, include all the kids in your program, even if they don’t attend regularly.
- Show the list to the adults you recruited and let them choose the child they want to focus their encouragement on.
- Across from each name, leave room for the secret Barnabas’s name. Be sure to review the list periodically so you can replace a Barnabas who is unable to fulfill his or her commitment for the year (e.g., moved away, is in poor health, changed ministries/churches).
You may want to provide a “prayer card” to each Barnabas. A simple index card will work. Include the school year and the child’s full name, nickname (if any), age, date of birth (optional), level in Kids4Truth Clubs, grade in school, and any prayer requests you are aware of.
Benefits of the Secret Barnabas Program
The Secret Barnabas program should benefit both the congregation and the kids.
Benefits to the church body
- The congregation understands and sees firsthand the importance of children’s ministry.
- The congregation discovers what the children are learning through Kids4Truth Clubs.
- Children are prayed for individually as well as corporately. Your church should see results from these prayers on the kids’ behalf.
- Adults’ heart for the children’s ministry (and specifically for children in the church) grows.
- Children get to know some of the adults in the church, thus building relationships within the church body.
Benefits to children
- Children are encouraged to learn God’s Word. After an adult has commented on a child’s patches, that child may seek out that adult to see if he or she notices when the child has earned a new patch. When this happens, the program is working as it should—the adult has become a regular encourager and motivator (a secret Barnabas) for the child to learn God’s Word.
- Children feel more a part of the church family.
- Children are prayed for regularly. They should personally see and feel the effects of this prayer even if they don’t understand that an adult’s regular prayer is behind their salvation decision or the blessings they experience.
- Children have an adult outside their family and school to whom they may have to answer. Accountability can help them make wise choices. For example, knowing they may be asked to recite something may encourage them not to give up on their memory work.
Early 2023 is a great time to start! If you have questions about the Secret Barnabas program, contact me at marrena@kids4truth.com or 866-754-4272, option 2.
Marrena Ralph is Regular Baptist Press’s Kids4Truth Clubs program specialist.
