The new kid on the block at Anglican Youthworks says his motto is ‘whatever it takes’ to bring a young person to Christ. James Fong, recently appointed to the new role of High School SRE Adviser for the Diocese of Sydney, is keen to get the gospel message out to the city’s 220 state High schools.

“Our current strategy aims to help churches run Special Religious Education (SRE) in their local high schools,” says Youthworks CEO, the Rev Al Stewart. “People in local churches will help build bridges to bring the kids in.”

James has big plans for his new role. He is already writing a module on the role of SRE Teachers, providing a model to help assist in teaching and taking SRE seminars. He is also keen to promote weekend camps that provide a vital link between churched and unchurched students.

He sees a link between his work and the Mission of the diocese. “Over 70 per cent of believers make a commitment to Christ before they become adults,” he says. “Three per cent of children attend church, but 100 per cent attend school. It is the obvious port of call to preach Christ crucified.”

While he is full of admiration for the work currently being done by many churches, he says the ministry’s effectiveness varies from place to place.

“There are some schools where ministry is very successful and some schools where there are difficulties because of behavioural problems, cultural differences and socio-economic issues,” he says. “It is difficult sharing the gospel with Muslims, for instance. We need to be more equipped. That is something we need to consider more.”

However, one of the biggest hurdles for effective High School scripture ministry is finding people willing to teach it. “People are often afraid, because high school students can be pretty intimidating,” he says.

But just getting people who are willing to teach scripture, and stick with it, is not enough; they have to be the right people. “We get some enthusiastic people who want to do it, but don’t know their Bible very well and we get some people who do know the Bible well, but don’t know how to teach it simply,” he says. “This is the dilemma.”

He does not wish though to create the impression that all is doom and gloom. “There are some things that we could do better,” he says. “But that’s always the case. It’s not that severe.”

He is particularly encouraged by the hard work and initiative shown by many youth workers. “They are doing the best they can with the limited resources they have,” he says. Mr Stewart agrees that youth workers often play a pivotal role in ensuring the gospel message reaches High School students. “A good model I have seen is a youthworker who works part time in a school as an SRE teacher and part-time in a church,” Mr Stewart says. “He or she acts as a bridge between the two communities.”

James feels that one of the best ways for churches to integrate their youth ministry with the work in High Schools is to encourage the young people in their congregations to be proactive and invite their friends from scripture lessons to church youth groups. This works well, he says, because “the youth of today are much more relational than event based.” This means that they relate more easily to each other than 20 or 30 years ago, but are less inclined to turn up to a youth group every week. “If a better deal comes up they will go to that,” he says philosophically. But this very change in habits emphasises the importance of taking the gospel to where young people are guaranteed to be: at school.

To ‘keep his hand in’ James teaches scripture once a week at Punchbowl Boys’ High School in the Bankstown area. Watching him take a class is an education. He has an easy rapport with the students and, with a combination of illustrations from life, humour and solid Bible teaching, he keeps their attention throughout the hour-long session.

He says his desire to work with young people was partly the product of his background. The son of a Presbyterian minister who came to Australia from Hong Kong in 1968 to pastor a Chinese church in Surry Hills, his father’s death when he was 9, and his own near escape from drowning, when he was 7, had a profound impact on the young James. “I always believed in God,” he says. “I was committed to Jesus at a very early age and that gave me a firm conviction that children can make a meaningful response to Christ.” There can be no doubt this conviction drives his ministry.

He says other students were antagonistic to the gospel during his own time at school. “I had people dialoguing with me constantly about why I believed what I believed,” he says. “But this was actually good training because it forced me to think through the issues.”

He also developed a particular heart for children from poorer backgrounds and broken homes. “A lot of the children I knew were experiencing hell now and if they only had hell to look forward to then that was a supreme tragedy.”

Now 29, he studied theology before working for four years with Scripture Union, which prepared him for his current role. “I hope in time there will be more SRE advisers,” he says. “This work is so strategic. If a 15-year-old is converted then he or she can serve God for 50 or 60 years.”

Working at the coalface of mission in Sydney is doubtless tough at times. But for James, whatever difficulties he faces are redeemed when a student responds to the message of the gospel. “A little while ago a Muslim girl came and whispered to me ‘James, I have prayed the sinner’s prayer’,” he says. “That gave me the greatest joy.”