Chapel

I spoke in Chapel last Friday and really enjoyed it. There is a sense of spiritual struggle across campus from the elementary to the high school. I'm praying for revival. I'm burdened for students to come to know Christ personally and for those that know Him to act like it. Please pray!

A Speck of Light

Yesterday in class I showed the movie "Facing the Giants" to my students. I'd never seen the movie before and there's one part where a kid who's very disrespectful to his dad gets his heart right with the Lord and apologizes to his dad. During this part one of my students, who's very disrespectful to his mom and dad, looked up at me and there were tears in his eyes. It was obvious that the Lord was working on his heart. This student is not a Christian and honestly I was getting discouraged because it didn't seem like anything was getting through to him. I had prayed specifically for him yesterday morning and I praise God that He chose to encourage me to not lose heart. He has a plan for this boy and I'm a vessel that He's chosen (what a privilege!!!!) to share His message with him. On Sunday we had a visiting preacher at church and something he said has stuck out to me and I've thought on it all week. He said that many times we don't think God is as powerful as He is. How true that statement is! God desires for this boy to know Him and the sheer fact that his parents are not believers and don't want to be believers but have him in our school is a miracle. They send him to our school for the character building that we teach. Little do they know how much he is daily exposed to Bible verses and a clear message of the Gospel. God's Word changes hearts and he's hearing God's Word regularly. Please pray for his salvation. I know God is at work!

She's Back! :-)

Our 6th grade teacher is back after being gone since December. She went home and had a routine mammogram in the States and they ended up finding cancer in her breast. She underwent surgery and has been recovering for several months. She's always an encouragement to me and I'm so glad to have her back. I didn't realize how much I'd missed her until she came into my classroom on Tuesday morning. Just the sight of her made me smile. She's looking great and has come back renewed and refreshed. This is quite the contrast to the overall climate of the school right now. Many of the other teachers are struggling through these last 7 weeks. There's a sense of "I'm done, let me go home" around the campus. It's been a tough year. I know I've learned a lot both about myself and about schools in general. I'm sad that there are five teachers not returning next year. I think if things weren't so rough this past year there wouldn't be so many teachers going. I will miss them but I'm sure God has other plans for them.

Easter

We had a good Easter service yesterday. It was the first time in a while I was able to be in an actual service and not with the kiddos. After the service we had the Lord's Supper. 'The Old Rugged Cross' was played during the time of the Lord's Supper. After thinking of my family for several days I thought of the first time I heard that song. It was at my mama's funeral. It was her favorite hymn and I had never heard it until that day. It's interesting how music can bring you back to memories from long ago. When I became a Christian I remember how I finally understood that precious hymn. I had no longer thought of my mama first when I heard it but of Christ and the wonderful sacrifice he made for me on that old rugged cross. Yesterday though I thought of my mama and how much I miss her. No matter how many wonderful women I have in my life no one will take her place. She was strong, spontaneous, and just plain fun. I like to think that in some ways I'm like her. Probably one of the hardest things for me is that I don't even remember what she sounded like. I can't remember my daddy's voice either. I understand God's purpose in taking them but it doesn't take away the sadness that I sometimes feel in not having them. I was supposed to go to lunch with friends after church but was a bit too emotional to go out. I went home and spent time with the one Person in my life who will always be there for me. It's amazing what therapy for the soul tears can be. Pouring my heart out to the Lord was what I needed. I didn't need to go out with people even though I'm sure they would have helped to make me laugh. I know that friendships take time and sometimes I get impatient. I think of all my wonderful friends back home and wish I had that type of support group here. I have to remind myself that those relationships were built over time and they didn't happen instantaneously. I'm very thankful for the new friendships that I've made here. I'm sad that the one friend I've grown the closest to will be leaving to go back to the States. But I also know that God has a purpose in it. I know that He sees the big picture and I only see one frame at a time.

Spring Break

This past week was Spring Break. It was a good time of reflection and rest. Tomorrow is the first Sunday in a while where I will be able to attend the 10am church service. I'm looking forward to hearing Pastor Weaver. It's weird to think that tomorrow is Easter. I keep remembering Easter 13 years ago. It was the last time my entire family was together. It was a month before my mom died and my parents and all my brothers and sisters were home. It was such a fun time and it makes me homesick thinking of those memories. I'm thankful God gave me the time he did with both my parents.

Finally Fixed

It's amazing how many people are out of town! After several calls I finally found someone who had a vehicle and did not go out of town. Thankfully she was able to take me to get a new tire. I ended up having to get two new tires which was a little distressing on the financial end but all is well. Now my tire is fixed and I can get around to places.

Tire

This week I'm staying at a friend's house in Karen. Yesterday I was rushing to make it back to their house to let their grounds keeper go so he wouldn't have to walk home in the dark. As I was making the turn onto the road they live off of I hits some rocks. Now to drive over rocks is not really a big deal here. But I failed to realize how sharp those rocks were until I heard my tire blow. It should be interesting finding someone to help me fix my tire since most people who are able to help are out of town right now.