Not Immune

Completely, utterly surrounded. Fans cheering for God more than for the top-chart singers. People raising their hands in worship. Friendly smiles exchanged among strangers. Tents full of charity efforts.

All of that Christianity enveloped me, yet I still sinned.

Yes, I'm a sinner. And yes, I sinned at a Christian event.

Despite the Christ-focused efforts that might be at our fingertips, a spiritual and holy atmosphere is not enough to make us immune to sin. It creeps under our skin the second we say "yes" to a temptation, whether it be with a quick temper or a lustful glance. In my case, all it took were some unkind and snappy remarks to my family. Jesus was in my heart and I'd said "yes" to Him long ago; nevertheless, I was not and will not be immune to temptations that lead to sin.

This past weekend, I had the chance to check out contemporary Christian music at Spiritsong with some of my family. We just might fall into the category of overenthusiastic fans, considering our homemade signs, glowsticks (not pictured), and TobyMac t-shirts. :)

If we went by that picture, it would be safe to say that every aspect of the experience was centered around enjoying time together and cheering for some great music. However, this photo doesn't tell the full story. 

Not even a few hours before this picture was taken, I let some anxiety get the best of me and took it out on my family. I was grumpy, made remarks that were inconsiderate, and was intolerant of anything that did not fit into my mold of what was right or wrong. They were incredibly supportive and the environment was as positive as can be, yet my urge to have a bad attitude towards my family members came to fruition. 

Thankfully, I came to realize my mistake and apologized. We enjoyed the rest of our time together and I feel that the concert revived my inner fire for following Christ.  

My hope would be that we take this example and apply it to other parts of our lives. No matter where we are, we cannot assume temptations will not get the best of us or that we no longer need to make a conscious effort to make godly choices. Whether we be walking through the doors of a church, serving in the mission field, spending time with other Christians, or having a presence in some sort of religiously-affiliated place, we must remember that we are not immune to sin. 

Christ must be on our mind and in our hearts at all times. Even when we are in places that seem to pour out His goodness, we must remember that we are still in need of His love, grace, and forgiveness. No environment can make us the "perfect" Christian and that is not a concept of which to be ashamed. We are all in need of the perfect sacrifice, Jesus, to account for our imperfect selves! 

Have a good night, dearest readers, and remember how much He loves you!

Lessons Learned from a Kindergartner

Hello Readers!

I spent most of my Wednesday doing what I love most about being an education major-- assisting and observing in a kindergarten classroom! The children are always so gracious in their offerings of hugs, drawings, and giggles. I usually leave feeling really relaxed and at peace that teaching young children is what I want to do with my life. Today, however, left me with a lot more to think about.

Am I actually prepared for the situations my students are going to present? Can I really handle a classroom full of energetic bodies that can't seem to stop bouncing from their seats and sliding down to play under the tables? Do I really have the patience for early childhood students who like to push boundaries and who are not quick to grasp concepts?

I had the opportunity to lead the writing time for a solid 45 minutes. Every time the teacher peeked into the room to get another student for an assessment, she complimented how quiet and focused they were. She saw what I was missing; the majority of the class was being productive and gaining great practice in writing. I was simply distracted by the few students who decided today was the day to test Miss Sara's patience! 

One student in particular made it so easy to become frustrated. The prompt was to write about what was played at recess. The student's dramatic and loud response..."I did nothing at recess!". Eventually, this led to the paper being thrown on the floor and a refusal to do any work. I had to raise my voice with the student, in addition to moving the student to a different table away from the others, plus moving down on the behavior chart. These are not aspects of classroom management I enjoy or am proud of doing, but there was no other option in this case!  

Keep in mind, all during this episode, there were a handful of students tattle-telling on each other for various reasons. There was also a student playing "hide under the table" instead of doing work. Then, a handful of gifted and talented students waved their hands frantically out of boredom because they were finished and wanted the teacher to give them more work to do. As if that wasn't enough, several other hands were held in the air because help was needed sounding out words and thinking of ideas. Good golly, talk about needing an extra set of eyes and hands!

Despite the tears from the student refusing to do work and the chaos that seemed to surround the incident, I managed to pull everyone through the assignment. All of them wrote at least one sentence and illustrated their recess activities. Overall, you could say the lesson was a success!

But the story doesn't stop there. The reason today will stick with me wasn't the struggle of classroom management. Those are skills that will be learned with more practice.

The true struggle from today's experience is feeling comfortable with my attitude towards the difficult student. The back story to all of this is that earlier in the day, the student shared with the class frustrations of not spending time with a father figure.

Here I am, losing my patience, with a child who clearly expressed he just needs to feel and experience some unconditional love.  

Do I even have the right mindset to be an effective, loving teacher?

That is a huge question that I can only pray God will answer. Maybe my doubts are unwarranted, maybe I'm jumping to conclusions, and most likely my career choice will work out fine. I'm sticking with my choice for now in hopes that this is the circumstance. 

Nonetheless, I still think it is incredibly important to pray and reflect on having the right mindset in pursuit of any path we intend to take. Skills can be learned, but a mindset is a whole different ordeal. Only Christ can bless us with the perspective we need to see our roles on Earth in the way He sees them. I can try all I want to be a good teacher, but if I am not leaning on Christ to give me the perspective to truly love and help children with patience and compassion, the work is not going to be effective. 

Although teaching may not directly be a religiously-affiliated task, I learned today how important my faith will be in pursuing and maintaining a career as a teacher. In the next few years of preparation, I will be continually praying for God to show His intentions for my career, including the mindset He wants me to have in working with young children.

A Beautiful Exchange + Other Weekend Memories

Happy Easter, Readers!

This weekend has been filled with more memories and emotions than any other Easter I can remember! I stayed at school for the holiday this year, but thankfully I had the opportunity to spend time with my beautiful and fun-loving grandma! 

Grandma was such a good sport about trying new things and going on all sorts of adventures during the weekend. Wrong turns, building water-system repairs and other craziness did not ruin her mood; in fact, I think these goofy experiences made it all the more exciting! The most special part of the weekend, however, was not just shopping and eating out together as I would have expected.

The truly special memories that I will hold close to my heart were from my grandma's willingness to go to church with me and to embrace the emotions this religious weekend can bring. Friday night, we went to a Good Friday service that far surpassed anything I would have expected. Saturday afternoon, we saw the movie Heaven is for Real. Today, we attended a fantastic church service. On top of all that, we recognized the anniversary of my uncle's unexpected passing of April 19, 2006. Talk about a tear-jerking weekend!

The tears, laughs, and smiles of this weekend all related back to the absolutely mind-blowing love of Jesus Christ. The ugliness of Christ's death on Good Friday became the most beautiful exchange imaginable on Resurrection Sunday. As my grandma pointed out, it is unimaginable to think of how the people must have felt to see their son, leader, and friend Jesus die on the cross that night. It truly places our own frustrations and sadness in perspective!

The beauty that comes from this ugliness is that Christ died as the perfect sacrifice in exchange for our sins. I hope and pray that this Easter, you spend some time reflecting on how much unconditional love that represents. Jesus died for you and because of mankind's sin. He rose from the grave, death has lost it's sting. Christ has provided the sacrifice we need in order to spend an eternity with God, all it takes is accepting His ways and choosing to live for His honor! Spread the message with those you love-- there is no other story more worth sharing! 

Join a Movement to Spread Some Love

I've been trying to think of good ways to get more reader interaction. A blog is great, but putting words to action is an entirely different step! 

So here's a challenge for my readers, Facebook friends, and acquaintances:

Join a movement to spread some love to those around you!

Small actions, big actions, safe actions, risky actions...the list goes on with what to expect from this challenge!

But regardless of how safe or risky you play it, know that sharing unconditional love and acceptance with those around you will bless you, them, and the world. 

Christ gave His life for you! Now it is time to glorify His name and share that love with others!

"I will praise you, O Lord my God, with all my heart; I will glorify your name forever. For great is your love toward me; you have delivered me from the depths of the grave." -Psalm 86:12-13

Here is a link to the Facebook page. I hope and pray that even if you don't like the page, you take the time to share some of God's love with someone each and every day!

Click here for the link: Spread Some Love