Joy Roberts

Joy Roberts

Guest Post

Joy is an In The Gap Alumnus with a passion for people, God’s Kingdom, and Chick-Fil-A. She came through In The Gap as a student for 3 sessions in 2014-2015. Now she runs a blog, works at Chick-Fil-A, and teaches character education at an Elementary School in Benbrook, Texas. She tells how the skills she received at In The Gap equipped her for what she is doing now. Her blog, hoperenown.com, includes teaching tips and tools for spiritual growth. 

It’s been 2 years since I returned from my last semester at In the Gap. It’s not easy to come home from 20 hours of training and discipleship every week, along with 40 hours of weekly Character classes and after-school Bible Clubs to suddenly nothing. But, God is faithful to give us seasons of rest, dear ones: we shouldn’t resist it. A few months after being home, the Lord began opening doors left and right to become a part-time nanny, then a full-time summer camp worker, and an after-school counselor to 27 fifth graders.

As a part-time nanny, I was able to use character-based praise and character-based correction. At summer camp, I shared the wordless book every chance I had. I lost count how many children accepted Christ that summer. Knowing how to share the Gospel with children effectively is imperative for anyone wanting to be in ministry. We have to know how to share truth without watering it down! In the Gap staff trained us LIT’s how to condense the truth, in a way that a child can understand it, without losing anything important. Another tool they gave us is how to create a dynamic Bible lesson straight from the Bible itself. At the Boys and Girls Club, I was able to use this tool at our Bible Club assemblies. I resigned from this job when my family moved from East Texas to west of Fort Worth and I began working at Chick-fil-A.

The reason I took this position was because I knew that Chick-fil-A’s desire was to serve the community in a Christ-like way. We even have something called “2nd mile service” that is taken directly from Matthew 5:41 “And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles.”

I want to love my neighbor more than I love myself. Chick-fil-A has countless opportunities to do this. Two weeks after starting at Chick-fil-A Benbrook, I went to my store’s owner and pitched the idea of taking Character Class to the local elementary school. The idea is that the students will learn a new character quality each month taught by one Chick-fil-A employee and myself.

Then, they would come in to Chick-fil-A, tell me the definition, and they’d get a free kid’s meal. My employer sat back in his chair and said, “I’m all on board! One thing, though. You can’t spend any money out of your own pocket. Not even markers, ok? You give me an amount you need each month and I’ll take care of it.” Wow! My mind was blown. God is so creative, isn’t He? I didn’t entirely know why He had me at Chick-fil-A, but I was excited to see it unfold. Getting to take Character Class a Texas elementary school has definitely been a highlight. We’ve done 3 presentations so far. During the first one, we did an overview of what character class is about along with a quick lesson on Initiative, Dependability, and Truthfulness. Once the new school year started, we taught Truthfulness more in-depth and then the following month we taught Forgiveness. God is moving tremendously in this and I cannot wait to see where it goes.                                                                                                    

I realize that this may not change the world, but as Katie Davis Majors said, “It may take place in a foreign land or it may take place in your backyard, but I believe that we were each created to change the world for someone. To serve someone. To love someone the way Christ first loved us, to spread His light. This is the dream, and it is possible.”  Katie Davis Majors