Expectant Waiting at our Christian School

Waiting isn’t popular. I remember working in fast food at age 16 and being constantly pushed to reduce wait times, with a large ominous red timer staring down on us urging us to think and work faster to keep things moving. It didn’t really work.

 “Wait for the Lord;
    be strong and take heart
    and wait for the Lord.”              Psalm 27:14

During this season of Lent (Feb 14 – March 19) we find ourselves waiting in a time of sober reflection as we anticipate the joy of the resurrection of Easter Sunday. We know it’s coming, and yet we believe the waiting has value. Waiting forces us to watch, listen, and meditate on God’s word. It creates anticipation. It challenges us to look forward and backward in our lives to see patterns of disobedience or faithfulness. Waiting makes us realize the extent to which we need a Saviour.

I’ve found myself waiting on many things lately. Here’s my short list

• for answers to prayers for healing for many in our community whose health is poor and future uncertain
• for growth in the life of faith for our students and staff
• for progress in the ongoing discussion between Christian school organizations in Ontario creating a new center for Christian Education supported jointly (schools, teachers, admin) for a firm foundation
• for a financial pathway for our school to follow that shows abiding trust and faith and wise stewardship
• for wisdom and guidance provided as school administration responds to the needs of the school

 What does it mean to “wait expectantly“ in an organizational setting like LCES? I believe that expectant waiting is the type of waiting infused with hope; we know that the end result that will come, is of God’s choosing, and is for our good.  Waiting with hope allows us to lift our heads and work in the assurance that everything is in His hands. God’s provision for us will be a reflection of his original plan for us as he “makes all things new” (2 Corinthians 5:17)

SJ

Our Christian School Graduates: Citizens of Today and Tomorrow

It was picture day for our soon-to be-graduates last week. While I was not present for the pictures, in my mind’s eye I can see them posing for the camera. Bright, eager students who have travelled for almost 9 or 10 years down the pathway of learning and the road of faith. Looking like adults in some respects, and yet still not quite done with childhood in every way. This photo day is often one of the first prompts that makes us realize that there is a transition coming at the end of the school year.

We’ve been busy for that decade as parents and a school working toward a future that we don’t fully know. At birth, did the parents of our current graduates have any idea of the nature of the world their children would call home in 2018? Did they know the joys and challenges that awaited them, the unique nature of their children, or the ways in which they would need the Lord’s help along the journey to graduation? Likely not, but I trust that the gift or Christian education in their lives for part of that journey has been a strong voice of patterning God’s truth into their lives.  I trust the same will be true for those entering JK/SK this fall!

Whether you and your family are nearly ending or just beginning your time at LCES, I invite you spend just a few minutes with our graduate profile (linked here).  These are some of the larger objectives we value and work toward in a multi-year way, believing that that every day counts in the lives of our students.

Cardus, a Canadian “think tank dedicated to renewal of North American social architecture” follows the impact of Christian Education with great interest. They just published a document on the religious lives of Young Adults in North America. This is the landscape of our graduates and the world they will find themselves in increasingly each year.  I encourage you to take a look here.

SJ