Leadership and Character

Leadership and Character

This is an interesting time of year for a school. We are both planning for next year, as well as anticipating the end of the current year. While both seem far away, the office needs to work on both of these well in advance.

As I meet with families who are contemplating sending their children to Covenant, I often ask the question "If you think down the road 10 years to the point where your child will be graduating from elementary school, what are your hopes and dreams for them? What would you want to see in them and from the school that they attend?"  I love hearing the responses to this question as it probes deep into the reasons why we do what we do, and what is of deep importance to a parent as they think of their children.  Often  topics of character, relation to God and community, leadership, and competence all surface.

As I'm having these conversations, we are getting ready to send our grade 7 and 8 classes off to Pioneer camp for their annual leadership retreat. On this trip, they get to dig deeper into what it means to live together, to cooperate and work together, to who they are as an individual, and who God has made them to be. In a lot of ways, this trip and the rest of the year as we approach graduation probe into the very question I ask of parents when they first come to 'check us out'.

As I look at the beginning of an educational journey and at the end of one at the same time, it's a humbling, yet awesome overview of how God is at work at CCS in the lives of the students here.  He has crafted each of them unique and with specific gifts to contribute to His kingdom, and we get to be agents in uncovering and developing those.

Please pray a blessing on both of these groups - the parents and students visiting for the first time, and the parents and students of grade 7 and 8 students - that they may be keenly aware of God's care and craftsmanship in each of His children.

Thank you to our volunteers

Through the course of a school year, I get the wonderful opportunity to connect with volunteers of all kinds.  Some are current parents of students, some have children who attended Covenant, some just like us and want to give of their time.  It's an amazing and humbling experience that has changed my perspective on volunteering for a school.

In my own kids' last school, we were required to volunteer a minimum amount, and I have to admit feeling a little sense of negativity about the prospect.  We were busy, and had lots of other things to do.  We were heavily involved in our church, we had activities that our kids were in.... time was not freely available.....  but we proceeded to give of our time.

After sitting on the living room floor cutting items out for classroom projects, supervising playground activities, pulling on a pair of work boots and laying sod, helping with their building renovation, stepping in to the classroom to provide help, assisting with the annual fundraiser, we realized an amazing thing:  WE LOVED BEING INVOLVED IN OUR KIDS' EDUCATION.  It wasn't always glamorous, or even always noticed by others, but we gained a sense of what was happening at the school, we were connecting with others who wanted to help, and we were becoming a part of a supportive community.

As I ask volunteers why they do it, I rarely get the same answer.... "Because it's the right thing to do."  "Because I love working with these kids!"  "Because.... well, why wouldn't I?"  "Because I want to give back."  "Because I know you need this, and I love being needed."  "Because I get to work with great people."  "Because it's a lot of fun!"  "Because I know I am involved in what my kids are learning.... you can't get that in so many other places!"  "Because it's kingdom work."     These are just a few of the many reasons that people volunteer here.

Rest assured that we LOVE our volunteers and could not operate effectively without them, regardless of why they do what they do.  Rest assured also, that we always have a need for more.  

How can you become a part of Covenant's story?  Can you find a way to give of your time and talent to bless this community? You may even come out feeling great about it too!

The year of the/our Lord

Here we are - AD 2016.  Our Gregorian calendar is based on counting the years from Christ's birth, and hence the 'AD', which stands for anno Domini, Latin for 'the year of the Lord', or often translated as 'the year of our Lord'.

I had to read those two phrases over a number of times before I caught the difference, but it reminded me of a very fundamental understanding of a Christian worldview:  Christ is THE lord of all, then He can be MY lord of all.  We believe that Christ was and is God and was there with God before creation.  Regardless of whether we accept him as our Lord of all, he does not cease to be the Lord of all.  This is a comforting reality:  Christ does not rely on us for His sovereignty. He is Lord of this year, 2016.  We can accept Him as our Lord of 2016.  

As we look ahead to this year, we will seek ways to continue to proclaim that Christ is Lord of all.  In a world that continues to desperately need to hear the message of grace and forgiveness, of promise and redemption, of peace and hope, this is good news, indeed!!

Happy 2016 to everyone in and around Covenant and NACE.  Plug in to His power, and live as Children of light this year!!!