An Open Letter to my Students and their Parents...

I woke up this morning with a very sad and heavy heart with yet another school in my prayers.  This school shooting  hit a little close to home because I teach seventh grade.  I watched the news over my coffee, mourning for the loss of innocence at the horror that must have unfolded yesterday and I couldn't help but think about what was going through the minds of those who witnessed it.  But I also couldn't help but think about my own seventh grade children... because they. are. children.  And I cried.  Children shooting children.
And as I walked into my classroom this morning, I had your sons and daughters on my mind and there are a few things I want you, America, to know.  As teachers, we don't know how to fix this.  We would if we could, but we sit and watch in horror and feel like our hands are tied.

And to the students of my classroom, there are a few things I want you to know.  I want you to know that you are loved.  I love my job, but I love you more.  And I want you to know that you matter.  I want you to know that I would protect you.  I want you to know that I pray for you.  I want you to know that I will never turn my back on you.

To my parents... every 60 minutes, I get a new set of faces.  Every 60 minutes I begin a new battle.  A fight for attention, for understanding.  Every 60 minutes, I get a new chance to fix my lesson so that they really "get it".  But what I really want them to learn is that I see past the failing grades, the missing assignments, the test scores.  I want them to know that they are more than just a number on a report card to me.

"Mr. Masterson ... was a hero ... who stood there and allowed a gun to be pointed right at him."  (CNN.com)

I would imagine that nearly every teacher across America would stand up and do the same thing.  Because that's what teacher's do.  We stress, we plan, we worry if we are teaching it the right way, the best way.  We fight for the attention of your children in a world that we (teachers) struggle to understand.  And we go home tired.  We bring our work home, and I don't mean papers to grade.  We bring home the stories, the goodness, the moments of laughter, and we hang on to the "aha" moments and tuck them into our hearts using them as fuel to keep going.  Because that's what teachers do.  We keep going, we KEEP teaching.  And yes, we haul bags of papers and assignments home to grade that never make it inside, because by the time we get home we are weighed down and sore from trying to hold the baggage of our students and there is so much baggage.  Weary from the heavy burden of the great task set before us... the task of developing a human, and not just teaching them math or how to analyze a story, but teaching them about life, and how to handle fear when you are afraid you might be shot.  And we. are. tired.

I realize that our great state requires me to place more importance on making an inference or passing a test than on being compassionate.  So I hope you don't mind, but today - before reading our expository article on "The Spices of the World", we had a conversation about life.  We talked about respect, and about how to treat each other with kindness and love.

And over and over and over again, I was asked what I would do if something like New Mexico or Connecticut happened here.  And I had to be truthful... I looked them in the eyes and told them I don't know.  Because that's the truth.  I don't know what I would do if a lunatic showed up with a gun at my school.  But I do know that I would pray.  And I do know that I would try to be calm.  I would like to think that I would be brave.  And I would like them to know that I would do whatever it takes to keep them safe.

And even though I can't whisper Christ's name inside the four walls of my classroom, I want my parents and students to know that He is here.  And while I realize that I may not be as exciting as a video game, I want my students to know that Jesus loves them.  And although I can't tell them that, I want you to know that I will always love them because He first loved me.  From the moment they walked into the door in August, they captured my heart.  And I pray that they find peace within the walls of my classroom and of our school.

Please join me in prayer for the Berrendo Middle School in Roswell and for a peace to settle upon the schools of our nation.   

Did God Just Call Me a Cow???

I've been called lots of things in my life.  Trust me... being a middle school teacher... lots. of. things.  But I experienced a first yesterday.  It happened in our little Sunday School room.  I was intensely enjoying my coffee and my blueberry doughnut,  listening to various volunteers read scripture from Amos... feeling very proud of myself that we managed not only to get our little family of five to church, but that we arrived on time with one extra friend!  So here we were, sitting around, talking about Amos and how he served as a propet to Israel, how God used him to pronounce judgement upon Israel.

Someone read scripture from Amos 5....

1 Hear this word, you cows of Bashan on Mount Samaria, you women who oppress the poor and crush the needy and say to your husbands, "Bring us some drinks!"

2 The Sovereign LORD has sworn by his holiness: "The time will surely come when you will be taken away with hooks, the last of you with fishhooks.

When I first glanced at this scripture, I didn't give it much thought.  Bt something cauht my attention.  "Bring us some drinks!"  Why would asking my husband to bring me a drink be bad??  I tried to concentrate on the lesson, but as God would have it, he kept nudging.... dig deeper.  So as the rest of the class went on, reading the story of Amos and discussing... I was stuck on "bring us some drinks!"  

Bashan was known for cattle that were fattened up from the fertile fields they grazed.  (Bashan was just to the east of the Sea of Galilee.)  As it turns out, Amos was refering to the wives of court officials, land owners, or merchant wives... the wealthy women of Bashan.  He was calling these women fat cows because of the lavish and extravagent lifestyle they were leading.  Now, I realize that Bashan was known for these cows, and that it was a good thing that they were fat....   But I think I can speak with certainty when I say I don't think any woman in history has ever appreciated being called a fat cow! 

But here's why Amos did it.  The women of Bashan would pressure their husbands to make more and more money to support their lavish and luxurious lifestyles.  The husbands would then, in an attempt to please thier wives, turn around and exploit the poor because they had the power to do so.  

My head was swirling.  Am I a fat cow to God??  

Here is the challenge... what ways have I oppressed the poor.  In what ways do I pressure my husband to maintain a lifestyle that God has not called me to live?  Here are some questions  I would like to ask myself, to ask of God.  I would hope he will open up any area of my life that is not pleasing to him for radical change. 

1.  In what ways do I support my husband?  How am I showing him that I love and cherish him?  Do I tell him that I am proud of who he is?

2.  In what ways am I praying for my husband?

3.  What conversations are we, as a married couple, having about our finances?

4.  In what ways am I honoring my husband with my money?  In what ways am I honoring God with my money?  In what ways are WE honoring God with our money?

5.  In what ways is my family helping others?  

The last thing I want is to be a fat cow in God's eyes, or my husband's eyes for that matter.  Please join me in prayer that God will open the eyes of our hearts to the ways we are causing oppresion of any kind.  

Love,

Jen

Barely Passing

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. Colossians 3:23-24

This past Sunday night, I watched as my children swarmed around the house preparing for the week ahead.  The girls were busy picking out clothes and cleaning out backpacks and lunch-boxes.  My son was shifting back and forth from the computer to the table finishing up a biology project that wasn't even due until Tuesday. 

This incredible overabundance of gratitude and pride emerged.  They're doing what I've taught them and asked them so many times do!!!!!  And I didn't even have to ask them to do it!!!!  Just as I was about to break out into full on momma-happy-dance... God handed me a magnifying glass.  I walked over to his project, and upon further inspection, I noticed that it was really lacking in detail - detail that my little teacher heart knew he could add to get the "A" I knew he was capable of.  And there may have been a little... okay, a lot of teacher coming out when I stumbled over the right way to tell him that he was capable of doing better.  

Before I knew it, I was fully engaged in confrontation with my teenager.  What stopped me in my tracks were these words from his mouth - words that were said with such conviction, that it just broke my teacher heart:  "I don't know why you're so upset???  It's passing, and that's good enough!!"

I began to wonder where I had gone wrong.  When did "That's the best I can do" get exchanged with "I'm okay doing the bare minimum?"  I felt a tinge of disappointment in myself as a mother.  And as I stepped back from this confrontation, God pointed the magnifying glass at me.  When did I stop giving God my best?  When did I become okay with just barely passing for Jesus?  

I needed alone time with God to rekindle the desire to do my best for him.  He brought me to our scripture for today's post, and reminded me that as long as I seek Him, he will bridge the gap of where I fall short as a mom.  He reminded me that when I focus on Him, give Him my very best of everything - that He will pour out his very best on me.  

I don't want to be lacking in his eyes.  Next time, I'm giving it all.  I'm starting by looking for opportunitites to bless others.  I'm recording the blessings I see around me everyday.  Are you with me?  

Resources to Reconnect:
Ann Voskamp's  1000 Gifts Devotional

See

Waking up first thing in the morning, I see His mercy and grace... shiny and new for the taking.
Rushing to that first cup of coffee, I see warmth and feel His presence as I soak up His word.
Rousing my children, I see opportunity.
Rushing through each morning, the stumbling to get out of the door... I see togetherness and a mix of missed opportunities.
The ten minute ride to the school, I see a man sitting next to me and not the innocent boy who played legos.
Listening to my girls sing in the back seat and giggle, I see the future.
Walking into the halls of my school, I see teachable moments and try to avoid the stress.
As bells rings, and faces fade in and out of my classroom, I see sadness and frustration and try in my fleeting moments to console those who are so deeply sad.
As the copy machine flies and plans are made and weeks transform into weekends, I try to find opportunities to love, and to SEE the good in all of my students.
And as Monday approaches, I see yet another reflection of His mercy and grace.

~Read more "5 Minute Friday" posts here...
http://lisajobaker.com/

Pure Heart Girls & a freebie!!

If there is ANYONE on this planet who feels more unequipped to lead a bunch of teenage girls.... let me just be the first to tell you....  IT IS ME!!  I teach 7th grade reading, and with that being said, you are correct in assuming that I feel comfortable around those strange creatures known as pre-teens...  tweens if you will.  But being comfortable around a mixed group of 11-13 year olds in a classroom, where I am required to talk about things like theme, and setting, and summary, or main idea, or why Katniss volunteered for tribute is easy.  Leading teenagers to Christ?  My knees start to buckle.

So, back in August, I was approached at the beginning of the year by a precious sweet girl.  She came in with a flock of friends and asked if The Pure Heart Girls could meet in my classroom after school a few times a month.   Before I could even think.... I heard the word "SURE!" come out of my mouth.  I then immediately thought..... what have I gotten myself into????  So I tried to find something age appropriate for our first meeting. 

How do you minister to tween girls... in a public school???  I wasn't sure of my boundaries.  I didn't have any good devotionals or studies we could follow so I turned to an unequipped girls best friend.... google.... um, after praying, of course.

This is one of the first things I found.  I must have watched it 5 times before I saved the link to show the girls.  It is such a powerful message.

We watched this video the very first meeting that we had.  If you have daughters, I would encourage you to watch it.  I beg you to watch it... "more than the price tag on their clothes ... or the followers they have on twitter ... regardless of who they think they are ... whether they are on the hot list or the not list ... the reality is that they are powerful, and strong, and capable."  When I'm having a really bad hair day, I need to remember to come back and watch this again!

I also had remembered reading about a young group of girls who met at someone's house, and I could not for the LIFE of me remember the website or what they called the girls.  And just as I sat down to start searching appropriate devotions... to the glory of God wouldn't you know it... the name just popped in my head.  The Balcony Girls!  Isn't that awesome how God works like that!  It was just another reminder that I had made the right decision to be a part of these sweet young ladies' lives.  And I am really so deeply humbled and honored that God chose me to whisper His truth into their hearts.  So I used a lot of what The Balcony Girls do to talk about virtues, and girl-type relationship issues for our first few meetings, and it has proven to be a huge hit!  I will more than likely buy their e-books... and I will keep blogging about our meetings!

There's always lots of giggling and laughter and games and red punch and oreos and chips and dip and fellowship and it is ALWAYS amazing.  They are UUUUUhhhhhh-mazing.  We meet for about an hour and talk about what it means to be "A Pure Heart Girl"... saving yourself for your husband, for marriage and I muddle my way through the awkward conversations and gently remind them for the REALLY tough questions that they should probably ask their parents.

We watched the video above, and they sat mesmorized.  The next meeting, as the girls came in, they all wrote down questions that they had about God, about The Bible... and for a solid hour, we talked about salvation, people in the bible, families, and hard situations, and before leaving we joined hands in a circle and prayed.  Yall.  It moved me tears to listen to these girls pray for each other, and our school, and our teachers, and future relationships, and for healing, and a whole array of social issues that flowed out of their hearts to the cross of Jesus. 

Just a few of The Pure Heart Girls who collected toiletries for a local women's shelter.

So I really want to do something special for these girls.  When I look over all of my regrets in my life, I think that the times that I veered off course is partly due to not having God's word tucked away in my heart.  I really want to have The Full Armor of God so that I can take a stand... but more than anything, I want to teach them the importance of knowing God's word.  I want for them to be so overwhelmed by God's love for them, that they will know in their darkest hours that he is light.  I want them know that when they are stressed out and unsure and pressured, that they can lean on Christ.  I never want them to doubt that whatever happens, they can draw from the well of mercy and grace. 

Starting this spring semester, The Pure Heart Girls will be creating journals.  Not just ordinary journals, but journals where they will hopefully find the beauty of God's word (thank you Ann Voskamp for the mighty inspiration).  A journal to keep memory scriptures, and favorite verses, and maybe a few notes from The Balcony Girls Books.  I picked out ten scriptures that we are going to memorize.  Each week  when we meet, we will paste God's word into our journal and have a small devotion about it!  I want God's word to be beautiful to these girls... and me.  I want them to believe God's word...  "What is beautiful in our lives is what actually becomes the most useful in our lives. We are drawn to beauty and Jesus is the Most Beautiful — so hang up His words as art."  Ann Voskamp

So by the end of the school year, we will have {hopefully} memorized ten of the most beautiful scriptures in God's Words.  Would you like to join us?  I'm including the ten verses below as we are using them.

.... I will keep adding these as I make them!  Feel free to share them, print them, hang them wherever you need a reminder of the beauty of God's word!