October 2012

Wednesday Workshops

The early years of parenting are filled to the brim with questions. There are the survival questions in year one and two; will I ever get to sleep through the night again? Does every child eventually become potty trained? Then there are the questions of year three and four; the neighbor children are starting soccer and ballet, should we? Preschool – necessary, or a nice way to create time to run errands? Parenting is full of questions and that is not yet counting all the questions our children ask. I remember weeding a bed in the garden when my four year old walked up and said, “Mom, what evaporates faster, running water or standing water?” After I collected my jaw from amid the peony tubers, I gave her the best answer I could come up with and wondered what other questions were ahead. Over time and in His kindness, the Lord led our family to Trinity Christian School. Our children’s questions kept on coming and ours as parents became more complex and weightier. How grateful I have been these past ten years to be in a community replete with wisdom and experience and resources.

I am so thrilled that some of these resources are now made available to a broader audience of parents and families through Wednesday Workshops; 30 minute glimpses of a Christian community sharing its gifts for the greater good of the body! Join us!

“I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do.” John 17:4

Periodically I am asked a question that is worded something like this, “I know that academics and Christianity are both important at Trinity Christian School, but which one is really the most important?” There is a flaw in this question that has long troubled me. The question presents a false dichotomy.

The apostle Paul reminds us in his letter to the Colossians that all things were created through and for the Lord Jesus, that He is before all things and in Him all things hold together. Therefore any study that leaves out Christ is at best incomplete. I encounter Him in science when I study how He has created the universe, I encounter Him in math when I find His attributes there, I encounter the Word made flesh in language; I cannot get around Him unless I intentionally close my eyes.

But let us pretend for a moment that we could honestly and rigorously pursue academics without mentioning Christ, the question that seeks to assign greater importance to academics or religion still does not stand up to scrutiny. If I am a follower of Christ, I must do my work believing that I too will bring God glory by doing what He gave me to do.

A follower of Christ carries out his tasks in life with a view to excellence because he aims for obedience, service, gratitude, and faithful representation. If God has called me to be an educator, I am not obedient to His call if I educate poorly. God wants my best because He has given me His best. I am not serving Him well if I do a half-hearted job. I am ungrateful if I think and act as though He should find mediocre effort good enough. But perhaps more troubling than all of these is that if I am called to a task and I don’t give it my best, I am representing my Savior poorly. We are called by His name and the world judges Him by our actions. (Ezekiel 36:21-23)

If Christianity is important then as an educator I have no choice but to offer the very best academics. If excellent academics are my goal I will not attain it unless I help my students see Christ.

September 2012

A Great Start!

Today we complete two weeks in school. Many first impressions and observations have been made, many routines are newly established or revisited, many sighs of relief have been sighed. Here are a few things that stand out to me:

1. Never before has carpool run so smoothly during the first two weeks of school;
2. Countless parents have thanked us for striping the parking spots in the second call lot diagonally;
3. All kindergarten students are finding their way to class independently;
4. Day Away was a big hit this year with many students commenting on how good the games were;
5. For a while it seemed like the freshman class might grow larger than the junior class but now that the dust has settled there are 82 freshmen and 85 juniors;
6. We have already hosted the first college visit on campus and there are many, many more to come;
7. Cross Country is averaging a trophy per weekend;
8. After showing portions of her first movie, an alumna from the Class of 2007 stirringly implored the students in chapel to hear God’s call afresh;
9. We added no less than three new teams this year; JV Volleyball, JV Girls Basketball and JV Cheerleading
10. It is great to see student artwork begin to decorate the hallways again!