"And He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, 'If anyone desires to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all.'" - Mark 9:35
Today has been a crazy day. I started off well, meeting a friend for prayer at 7:30AM. Thank goodness for that, because I needed it the rest of the day. During the school day, I was pulled out of class for a meeting, had another meeting as a result of that meeting, met with my principal, and had yet another meeting later this afternoon. Oh yeah, and I taught today too. :)
When the school day officially ended, I had detention from 4-5, soccer field supervision duty from 5-6, met with my principal from 6-7, and had a Children's Services meeting from 7-8! Agh!
In the craziness of the day, I tend to forget the important things. It is only once things calm down that I am able to reflect on what God is teaching me. This semester I am in an adult Bible Study based on a series by Andy Stanley called, "Playing God." In it, he has been talking about our positions of power and how we use them. We have been talking about how Jesus washed the disciples' feet and served them, modeling how we are to live. We also talked about the verse above. A couple of the disciples were arguing over who would be the greatest in the kingdom. Jesus' response tells us that we are to be servants to all. As God is moving me into a position of more power, I need to look for ways that I can serve. One way I am recognizing is standing firm for the rights of the oppressed. That can take many different forms. Anytime a person is treated unfairly or taken advantage of, it is my responsibility to stand up for that person. Please pray for me as I move into a position of more authority, that I would put others before myself and be a servant to all.
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Amidst the Chaos
"But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; He is their strength in the time of trouble. And the Lord shall help them and deliver them; He shall deliver them from the wicked, and save them, because they trust in Him." - Psalm 37:39-40
I cannot begin to tell you how busy things have been in the past couple of weeks. In addition to my full-time teaching duties, I was also full-time principal while ours was out sick, and full-time housemom while the regular houseparents were in the U.S. We have had a serious virus going around the ranch, so that we had to close school last Tuesday because almost our entire primary grades teaching staff was out sick. I was blessed by the people who stepped in as subs so that we could re-open the school next day.
Also, as many of you already know, I will be taking on the role of interim principal beginning in June. The ministry is planning on me taking on more and more and my principal stepping back. As this is happening, I am already beginning to deal with issues and difficulties. While it has been challenging, I praise God for His "strength in the time of trouble." As difficult situations arise, I know I can trust in God.
Today we had our school's Festival of the Arts. Each student had to choose an art form to display their talents. We had presentations of dance, music, and art that just wowed me. My roommate Jessi, a lifelong ballet dancer, put together an awesome dance with some of the girls. My music class did a handbell presentation of Amazing Grace. There were lots of beautiful paintings and drawings. The kids here at the ranch are really talented.
As I get back into my normal routine again, I will try to write more often. Again, this is not a promise!
I cannot begin to tell you how busy things have been in the past couple of weeks. In addition to my full-time teaching duties, I was also full-time principal while ours was out sick, and full-time housemom while the regular houseparents were in the U.S. We have had a serious virus going around the ranch, so that we had to close school last Tuesday because almost our entire primary grades teaching staff was out sick. I was blessed by the people who stepped in as subs so that we could re-open the school next day.
Also, as many of you already know, I will be taking on the role of interim principal beginning in June. The ministry is planning on me taking on more and more and my principal stepping back. As this is happening, I am already beginning to deal with issues and difficulties. While it has been challenging, I praise God for His "strength in the time of trouble." As difficult situations arise, I know I can trust in God.
Today we had our school's Festival of the Arts. Each student had to choose an art form to display their talents. We had presentations of dance, music, and art that just wowed me. My roommate Jessi, a lifelong ballet dancer, put together an awesome dance with some of the girls. My music class did a handbell presentation of Amazing Grace. There were lots of beautiful paintings and drawings. The kids here at the ranch are really talented.
As I get back into my normal routine again, I will try to write more often. Again, this is not a promise!
Sunday, February 3, 2008
Experiencing the Greatest Commandments
"Jesus said to him, 'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'" - Matthew 22:37-39
My day today had somewhat of a rough start. When I got into my car to head to church, I turned the ignition, only to find that my battery was dead. I called those scheduled to ride with me as well as potential rides. Within five minutes, I had four guys at my house, all willing to help me. Just a few minutes later, the ranch family that was going to drive us, arrived. I was so blessed to be the recipient of verse 39 of Matthew. All these people were loving me as they would love themselves.
It didn't stop there. I realized on the way to church that I had left my purse in my car at the ranch. I had no money and no ID. As soon as I verbalized my realization, every adult in the car offered to loan me money for whatever I needed throughout the day. Again, I was immensely blessed by the outpouring of love I was experiencing.
The rest of my day went smoothly because of the love I had been shown in my moments of distress. As I think about how the love shown me changed my day, I am forced to then look at the first and more important commandment. Do I truly love the LORD God will all my heart, soul, and mind? Or am I easily drawn to the things of this life? I can honestly see how the Lord is growing me in this area. However, there are many times when I am distracted away from Him. I know that only complete love for God can allow me to truly love myself and my neighbor. Perhaps one day soon I will then be able to show love to another as I was shown love today in my time of need.
My day today had somewhat of a rough start. When I got into my car to head to church, I turned the ignition, only to find that my battery was dead. I called those scheduled to ride with me as well as potential rides. Within five minutes, I had four guys at my house, all willing to help me. Just a few minutes later, the ranch family that was going to drive us, arrived. I was so blessed to be the recipient of verse 39 of Matthew. All these people were loving me as they would love themselves.
It didn't stop there. I realized on the way to church that I had left my purse in my car at the ranch. I had no money and no ID. As soon as I verbalized my realization, every adult in the car offered to loan me money for whatever I needed throughout the day. Again, I was immensely blessed by the outpouring of love I was experiencing.
The rest of my day went smoothly because of the love I had been shown in my moments of distress. As I think about how the love shown me changed my day, I am forced to then look at the first and more important commandment. Do I truly love the LORD God will all my heart, soul, and mind? Or am I easily drawn to the things of this life? I can honestly see how the Lord is growing me in this area. However, there are many times when I am distracted away from Him. I know that only complete love for God can allow me to truly love myself and my neighbor. Perhaps one day soon I will then be able to show love to another as I was shown love today in my time of need.
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