Banner Year

Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer, saying, "Thus far the Lord has helped us." 1 Samuel 7:12

I often change this to, "Thus far the Lord has helped me", when pondering this scripture.

The past several weeks our pastor has led us through a series called Banner Years. At first I thought it sounded weird. What is a banner year? It seemed over my head. However, it was exactly what I needed to hear. I learned that EVERY year can be a banner year. It depends on your perspective. Some of the things Pastor Steven discussed were trusting the Lord with finances, examining what our "scoreboard" is "scoring". Is it scoring how we are pleasing man or how are taking the gospel to the lost. A banner year is a year that you consider successful. I was really challenged by this. I could easily (and I do often) look at this past year as being a barren year. I had two bad flares. Out of 12 months, I was on steroids for 6 of them which caused me to gain around 25 pounds. I endured severe pain for a month. It was hard financially. I loved my first year of teaching but it was very stressful.

Truthfully, however, it was a banner year. The Lord provided a wonderful job with wonderful kids during a terrible economy. We never went hungry (clearly!:)) The Lord provided everything we needed. We traveled to SK. The best, however, was the eternal perspective I gained while laying in bed for weeks. It can't even be described in words. I only see the vision in my head. My pastor and my egroup challenged me to reflect on how the Lord has helped. Wow. It is amazing. Have you had a banner year?:)

The Church

The Church
Elevation Worship

We are the change
the world is waiting for
We've got a love
the world is desperate for
We will lead
and take to your streets
Now's the time for us to rise
and carry hope and let love shine
and show this world that mercy is alive
Now's the time for us to rise
and carry hope to hopeless eyes
and show this world that mercy is alive

We're not afraidwe will abandon all
to hear your name
on lips across the world
we will run
in the wake of your love

Fill our hearts with your compassion
let our love be active here

     This past weekend, I was able to go to Charleston with the women in my family. The women in my family are very diverse in their opinions about pretty much everything in life:) While listening and disscussing many different issues with my family, the Lord continued to open my eyes about many things. There are people hurting around us. I mean REALLY hurting. It could be depression, relationship issues, a health problem, and many things I cant even think of. If you are hanging out around the church, you know there are hurting people inside. But what about those who don't know Jesus? They are hurting and hopeless. If you are a believer, you may be in a difficult situation, but you have the almighty God carrying you through. What if you were walking alone in this world?
     Before I went to work as a teacher, I knew little of the hurt and hopelessness in this world. I was surrounded by believers in college. We worshipped and prayed together. On occasion, we would go out on campus and find people to share the gospel with. Afterwards, you felt like you could check something off of the list.
     Now, I am around quite a few non-believers. People who are clueless to the love of Christ. They want to be rescued but don't even know what they need to be rescued from. Instead of filling our hearts with concern for these people, we spend our time concerned with whether or not someone else in the church is being "godly" enough. We criticize other believers for what they are wearing to church or what type of music they are listening to. I am so guilty of this! I love how this song describes how the church should be. I have been challenged this fall to analyze what in my life is holding me back from reaching the lost. Should I have 3 or 4 kids if I want to be intentional in reaching into other's lives? Should I aspire to be a stay at home mom one day or stay at work? I so do not have the answers to these questions but I have been challenged to think about them. How can we be the church the world is waiting for?

Why didn't you come sooner?

"Beneath the Waters"
Hillsong Cornerstone

This is my revelation
Christ Jesus crucified
Salvation through repentance
At the cross on which He died

I will rise, I will rise
As Christ was raised to life
Now in Him, now in Him
I live

Now hear my absolution
Forgiveness for my sin
And I sink beneath the waters
That Christ was buried in

I will rise, I will rise
As Christ was raised to life
Now in Him, now in Him
I live

I stand a new creation
Baptized in blood and fire
No fear of condemnation
By faith I'm justified
I rise as You are risen
Declare Your rule and reign
My life confess Your Lordship
And glorify Your Name
Your Word it stands eternal
Your Kingdom knows no end
Your praise goes on forever
An on and on again

No power can stand against You
No curse assault Your throne
No one can steal Your glory
For it is Yours alone
I stand to sing Your praises
I stand to testify
For I was dead in my sin

I will rise, I will rise
As Christ was raised to life
Now in Him, now in Him
I live
     I've already mentioned the book Undaunted in another post but WHOA is the Lord speaking to me through this book! I just wanted to share a story from the chapter that I read last night. Christine describes a night that her and her friends were lost in one of Australia's rainforests. Her description seemed miserable. She was cold, hungry, and the worst part about it was that no one knew that they were lost. I figured she was using the story as an illustration but when I got to that illustration, I was blown away. One of her friends decided to leave the rest of the group to look for help. It was a huge risk for him to go by himself. The boy came back the next morning with help. The feeling of being saved was incredible. A feeling that she would never forget. But she took it a step further. The Lord wants to save EVERY soul. We need to remember what its like to be unable to get out of the dark on our own. We as believers need to hold in our hearts the feeling of being saved and remember what it was like to be lost.
     Christine and her husband rescue girls who are sex slaves in Europe. One girl asked her why she had not come sooner. Wow! This causes tears for me and I do NOT cry easily. Do I look at every lost person like that. Why am I not coming sooner? Do I not remember what it was like to be lost? The Lord has used Caine to remind me that no rescue can come soon enough!

Here I am, Lord. Send me! Isaiah 6:8

Encouraged

This fall I have been able to read a couple of books that have really encouraged me in my relationship with the Lord. My amazing pastor, Steven Furtick, wrote a book called Greater based on the life of Elisha. He challenges us to pray for the Lord to reveal what is holding us back from complete surrender to Him and to start acting instead of sitting on our behinds. Bradley and I read this together and with our egroup.

 

The other book I read this fall was by another amazing preacher, Christine Caine. She and her husband started a ministry in Europe to rescue girls who are sex slaves and build them up in a life in Christ. They also have another ministry called Project Europe which focuses on training believers in Europe to become leaders. The Lord has given me a love for Europe so when I heard this it quickly caught my attention. The book undaunted teaches about how to face fear. If you are looking for a good read, check these out!!

 

The Mystery Box

This year our Science/Social Studies schedule is a little different. Instead of the traditional A/B schedule we see A day for 4 1/2 weeks and then B day for 4 1/2 weeks. The philosophy is that if students see us everyday they will understand and retain the content better. Friday was the last day for B day before second quarter. We were done with all of the Earth's atmosphere content. I decided to dedicate the day to "spooky science". Next quarter's content is the human body. I cooked up some "body parts" and put them into three different shoe boxes. I had the kids stick their hand in the box through a small hole in the lid. I told them a story of a man who was last seen alive in his office. All that was found were these remains. The government wanted them to identify the body parts. They were not allowed to look at the body parts. Most did not ask why! They had to list the "body parts" they found and place them into the correct body system (I created a chart for this) It was a great pre-assessment to see what they already know about the human body systems. It was hilarious to see their faces as they stuck their hands in the box. There were some shrieks and squeels! I'm pretty sure they enjoyed it and are a little more excited about studying the human body next quarter! Twelve year olds are the best!

Here are the body parts!

Carrots=fingers
Tortillas=skin
Blanched tomato=heart
Spaghetti=veins
Grapes=eyes
Small beans=teeth
Marshmallows=pieces of intestines

I put most of the food in oil before hand so it was extra slimy!

In Training

 

My husband officially started training today. The cool thing about CMPD is that you are hired first and then you go through the academy. We are both a little nervous and excited about this new season of life. I don't do change very well and this is a big change for our little lives. I'm nervous about what his schedule will be like because it's not the same everyday. At the same time, I'm excited because we have seen God provide this job. Applying to CMPD is a long and difficult process and Bradley made it though the process smoothly. It is truly a blessing. Please pray for us as we enter this new season!
Things to pray for:
That we will adjust to the new schedule
Bradley has the strength he needs for the physical training
That he retains the information he learns in class
That will will glorify our Lord in all that he does

A Chance...

My second year of teaching has been very different from last year. First of all, I was pretty sick the week school started and didn't feel prepared at all. Second of all, I feel like my kids are different in many ways from my students last year. Their behaviors are different as well as their performance in the classroom. I feel like I am a drill sergeant most days. As teachers, we take on many roles. We are teachers, counselors, nurses, even mom to some of the kids. Last year and this year, I have had students placed in my classroom in order to keep them out of trouble. At first I had the attitude of "Why me?". I am just a second year teacher and do NOT have the skills that many veteran teachers have. However, these students bless me each day. When I see them behave and give 110% on their work, I feel like jumping for joy. When they do well on a quiz and defeat the odds, it gives me warm fuzzies! A teacher gave me an article today from the Charlotte Observer called "The keys to a child's success". One point the author, Kay Mspadden, made was that children who are nurtured and comforted by adults are more resourceful and show self control. Some children are exposed to constant stress at home and they feel the need to continue the stress at school in order to feel normal. Their growing bodies are in a constant fight or flight mode. These children have no idea what it feels like to be nurtured of comforted. Children need to feel attachment to an adult.  This is truly a sad reality. The Lord really spoke to me through these words. Some scripture came to mind:

"Those who give to the poor lack nothing, but those who close their eyes to them receive many curses." Psalm 28:27

"As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead." James 2:26

"In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead." James 2:17

"Give generously to them and do so without a grudging heart; then because of this the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to."  Deuteronomy 15:11

"We remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ." 1 Thessalonians 1:3

As a teacher in a VERY large school district, I see children who are hungry. Yes, some are hungry for food but many are hungry for love. We as teachers have the opportunity to love as Christ loved. We can nurture and comfort our students. I am not writing this to say that teachers are the greatest thing in the world. It's to encourage the teachers who read this. SO many teachers feel discouraged each day at work and are ready to call it quits. I know because I hear it everyday. You can read the facebook statuses! We as teachers have the last chance to make a difference. We have a chance to love. To glorify God. Stand firm in your calling and love in a mighty way.