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| JK Adventures on "Lava" |
Words don’t really describe how good it feels for us to have students walking the halls again. The building feels more aligned with our school’s core purpose today: educating children, equipping them for a life of faithful, Christian discipleship. While there are all sorts of new things that we need to get used to doing differently, we have started with the assurance this morning that God is our refuge and strength, and that God’s claim on us is so much larger than COVID’s. We are eager to be safe, and at the same time not to have COVID author every part of this year. God’s world is still a place to discover and enjoy. We are still called to love, learn, and growth in wisdom as we serve one another.
“The joy of the Lord is [our] strength.” Nehemiah 8:10
At the launch of remote learning in March, I mentioned Psalm 137 as a lament of the Jewish people taken away from the land God gave them. Thy were exiled to Babylon against their will. Our theme this year (above) comes from the return of God’s people back to the land God gave them. Nehemiah and Ezra spoke to the people and helped them understand the times. I am sure they were overwhelmed with rebuilding structures, reawakening patterns of faithful living, and adjusting to things that seemed new and overwhelming to them. Nehemiah urges them not grieve their situation or their past sins, but rather to rejoice and delight in the goodness of God’s faithfulness.
That’s our task too; delight in the unshakable faithfulness of the Lord even as nations are in uproar and our footing gets shaky. (Psalm 46) Even though what was as solid as the mountains in our lives falls into the heart of a sea of what can feel like chaos, we are reminded God tells us to “be still” and know he is God.
That assurance is the very best back-to-school supply we have this year.
SJ
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