Working for the Lord

 

Heard in a classroom this morning:

Boys and girls, before we start on letters, we need to answer an important question: Why do we always need to do our best?

The students quickly responded with “Because we are always working for the Lord!”

This is a living example about how learning at LCES is about more than letters and numbers; students are being led to make sense of God’s world and how they fit in it.

I often think of the working world of our children’s future as they continue to work for the Lord. Life is more than getting a job, but working is large part of one’s life and means to praise God with what one’s talents and energy. Once per year the World Economic Forum publishes what their researchers have identified as the top skills needed in the current year’s workplace.  

Top 10 skills in 2020	Top 10 skills in 2015
Complex Problem Solving         Critical Thinking         Creativity         People Management         Coordinating with Others         Emotional Intelligence         Judgement and Decision Making         Service Orientation          Negotiation         Cognitive Flexibility	Complex Problem Solving             Coordinating with Others         People Management         Critical Thinking         Negotiation         Quality Control         Service Orientation         Judgement and Decision Making             Active Listening         Creativity.

 It is interesting to notice which skills are new on the list this year and which ones have moved higher on the list. (If you are interested in reading further on this kind of thing, I suggest starting with this. )

The world is changing. I am thankful for Christian Education which continues to wrestle with how education should best serve our students for their future.

SJ

The Care of Sheep

 “Take care of my sheep.” John 21:16 

A shepherd is not a common job in East London, which makes it challenging for us to access the wisdom in God’s word as this occupation is frequently used to help his people connect knowing and loving God with daily life. The personal and individual way in which a shepherd knows and cares for each sheep is guidance for us to do the same for his children, our students. That includes all of their needs. 

Earlier this month we had a day of learning for our teachers. A main topic of the morning was mental health as it relates to students and learning. While this isn’t the first time in the recent past we’ve devoted time and energy to this area of our professional learning, it is important for our school as we look to support student wellness and learning. 

Did you know that:     

• Good mental health is characterized by the ability to learn, feel and express pos/neg emotions, form and maintain good relationships with others, and cope with change and uncertainty

• 1 in 5 children/youth have a diagnosable emotional, behavioral or mental health disorder

• 1 in 10 young people have a mental health challenge that is severe enough to impair how they function at home, school or in the community.

Nearly half Canadians:

• say they have suffered from depression or anxiety have never sought medical attention as part of their response. 
• believe that people use the term mental illness as an excuse for bad behavior 

While we might find connecting crutches with the injured foot as an intuitive way to care for a child, supporting their mental well-being is so much complex as we navigate through potential stigma, perhaps exhaustion, and likely feeling underequipped with a lack of awareness or experience to “take care of [His] sheep.” If that’s the case, consider accessing Shalem Mental Health Network and Canadian Mental Health Association resources as a place to start. 

SJ

Parents Tell Your Children: The "Why" of Our Christian School

As a new father, I recall holding our gift of God only about a month old on the day he was baptized as an infant. It was a busy day in our household that had been turned upside down as we transitioned from a home of two to become three. In a swirl of new parent fatigue, excitement, and “we’re really parents to this child?” we were in church. While family and after church lunch details had been on my mind, singing these words abruptly brought the day in to focus: 

God the Father, God of glory,

miracles, and mystery;

generations all adore him,

God the same through history.

Parents, tell your children, age to age the same.

Glorify the living Lord above,

magnify his holy name,

magnify his holy name.

This is a sweeping picture of all of life, much bigger than the exhaustion of infant care. Guiding our children to recognize, love, and serve the God who claims them as his own is a tremendous task. I’m grateful that Christian Education is one of the ways parents can join generations of those who “tell their children” so that they too may know and serve Christ in all things. 

Are you or others you know compelled to ensure that generations will continue to have the opportunity of Christian Education? We need several new board members this year to replace outgoing members who have served and even extended their service as result of COVID. Please contact Dwayne DeVries (board chair) or myself for more details. 

SJ