Tag Archives: school

Salt, Light, Peacemakers

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crayonsYesterday I only preached to part of the group that meets in the chapel at University Church of Christ. I let the rest of the group listen in, but my message was really addressed to our public school students.

School was on their mind. Today is the first day of classes here. As they thought about the upcoming year, I told them to think of themselves as missionaries. We had sent out groups this summer to Africa and Latin America. Now we’re sending out a group to the public schools of Abilene.

I told them that their mission was to change their school. To make it a better place. And that they would do that in three ways:

  1. By being salt. I reminded them of how salt changes the flavor of food. (Unfortunately, the young boy I called on prefers unsalted mashed potatoes; I told him he’d ruined my point!) And we read Matthew 5:13:

    You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men.

    They were reminded that the only way to be salty was to be different from those around them.

  2. By being light. We talked about how darkness can’t project itself, it can only occupy the places where there is no light. By being light at their school, they would naturally push back the darkness. And we read Matthew 5:16:

    In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.

    They were reminded that they needed to let other people see good in them, not evil.

  3. By being peacemakers. We talked about the unrest in the world, but more specifically the unrest that occurs in schools. We talked about racial tensions, social tensions, gangs, bullies. We talked about how one voice speaking up for peace can often defuse a tense situation. We read Romans 12:17-18:

    Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.

    They were reminded that they were to be agents of God’s presence, bringing peace to a tense world.

And after each point, I had everyone who would be involved in school (including college students, teachers, and others) to raise their hands and repeat after me:

“I will be salt.”
“I will be light.”
“I will be a peacemaker.”

Image by Amanda Petty via Creation Swap

School’s here

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Yesterday, we had a special time at church, with our attention focused on the beginning of the school year. We called all of the students up front and gathered around them to pray for them.

We did a number of scripture readings throughout the service, passages that had to do with education. One passage we used was the first chapter of Daniel. I told the kids that their situation wasn’t really like that of Daniel and his friends, though it might feel at times that they were being dragged to school by force. But I told them that there were some similarities.

We live in exile. Even in the nicest places, there are people around who don’t believe in God. Or books that promote ideas that aren’t entirely godly. Or peers who are choosing to do the wrong things.

I think that we need to teach our kids to be ready to be like Daniel and his friends, to say, “No, I can’t do that.” Groups like the Jehovah’s Witnesses prepare their kids very well to say, “I can’t participate in that.” I think all Christians could do a better job at teaching their kids discernment. (And our grown-ups, too!)

As the school year begins, I pray for protection for our kids and for those who work in the educational system. I pray that they can always remember who they are and Whose they are. May they be salt and light in this world.

School days

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busesIt’s hard not to wax nostalgic at the beginning of the school year. Here are a few things you didn’t particularly care to know:

(1) I come from a family heavily involved in the education process. My parents were teachers. Lots of aunts and uncles and cousins were teachers. My oldest sister is a teacher. My other sister taught one year as an adjunct professor (like I am now); she now works as a proofreader for the S.A.T. test. My wife is now a teacher. My kids aren’t teachers yet, but they are students, which counts.

(2) I used to love buying school supplies. Did anyone else out there used to have to get a cigar box to keep their stuff in at school? Or remember Big Chief tablets? I remember always being excited to see what size Crayola box we were supposed to buy that year. As a kid, I really longed for the 128-color box. Or at least a big enough one to include a built-in sharpener.

(3) I kept all of my papers from 1st grade. Thought I was going to do it all the way through, but grew out of that. (fortunately) Still, it’s interesting to go back and see those old papers.

(4) I went to an experimental school in elementary school then again for junior high (no, we didn’t have middle school. It was junior high. Get over it. And cut the remarks about the experimental schools, too) My elementary didn’t have class rooms, we had “pods.” We had Independent Study Time (I.S.T.) during the day, which worked great for the nerds motivated students like me, but not so well for those who weren’t into reading on their own. In junior high, we each had different schedules and had to write out a daily schedule, including where we would be during our I.S.T.

(5) A friend in high school proposed that we go to a boarding school to better prepare ourselves for college. (He’s now a rich, famous doctor, and I’m wondering if I should have accepted his proposal) I replied that my goal was to be a youth minister, so the things I was doing at my home church were my best preparation for college. Hmmm…

OK, that’s enough of boring you to tears. If you’ve read this far, I’ll hope you’ll join me in a prayer for all those involved in the educational process. Teachers, students, administrators, parents… may we all glorify God during this school year.

(photo by Andrei Niemimäki)