Happy Tuesday!

What a wonderful and very long day! Convocation for teachers in FWISD is a giant inspirational pep rally. We all dress in our school shirts, bring noise makers, and bounce a beach ball all over the Wilkerson-Grines gymnasium. We are greeted by bands, cheerleaders and cold drinks provided by a local Coca-Cola distributer.

Inside, the music is great, totally rockin’ and everybody dances. We celebrate the victories of student achievement, own the failures and are inspired by a phenomenal speaker. Dr. Johnson congratulates us on a great year and charges us to excel even further in the coming year.

Isaiah 55:12 “For you shall go out with joy, and be led forward with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.”

I am approaching retirement in the next year or so. As I listened to Dr. Johnson and our speaker I began to think about how many more convocations will I attend? How many more trainings will I attend? How many more times will I prepare a room for a class of children and stress over the first day of school? I have spent the last 30 plus years of my life teaching children to read and helping them to look for answers in books and applying those answers to their lives.

As I look toward a change in my career there are some bittersweet moments as I reach a point of ending one life and beginning another. I have no doubt that God has called me to the ministry, but when I begin to think about not teaching it makes me a little sad.

I really needed to read this verse today. It seemed that God was reassuring me that when the time comes that His joy and His peace will be in my heart and I will be able to retire when it is time. So I praise God for His Word and His constant care during this time. I think I am beginning to grasp why faith is a gift from God. Our faith in God is contained in His Word and the gift of His Word never stops. It is sort of the gift that keeps on giving. Our task is to continue to seek His Word and just like Dr. Johnson charged us today with raising the bar of excellence on ourselves and in our teaching, the gift of faith continues to grow each time we are obedient to God’s call in our lives and seek direction through His Word.

Someone at some point taught you to read. And then they taught you how to understand what you read. What a gift you have received! God’s people thousands of years ago were given the task of writing down God’s Word through inspired hearts and minds. It is our task to take that word and have it be meaningful in our lives. If we don’t continue to learn through God’s word then how can we share God’s Word and gift of faith with others?

Take a few minutes each day to read a few verses and then pray about their meaning for your life. Take joy in the journey (we will be led forth in joy!). Wear comfortable shoes, count your blessings and say your prayers. Let us continue to pray for each other. Love you all, Bruce, Gaylene, Geni and Travis.

Gcapplenotes@aol.com

I am not moved by what I see. I am not moved by what I feel. I am moved only by what I believe and I believe God.