I Saw Something Beautiful A first grade teacher I know asked me to read/edit her letter of resignation today.

It is apparent in the letter that she had not been invited back next year because they don't have a position for her. She did not choose to retire, although she could have done so for many years. When they need to hire another first grade teacher, they can replace her with someone cheaper. The decision was economic - not based on her performance.

In the letter she stated, "I always said I'd quit when it did not impact me to hear, 'Look! I can read this!' Thankfully, that will never happen." She spoke in her letter of the joy and growth of first grade and how there is no greater priveledge than being a part of it. She thanked the board for the honor of serving on such a great team for so many years.

We cried together. Her tears, I think, were because of loss. I cried because her gratitude touched me.

She made a choice to be grateful, to appreciate the priveledge, to be thankful for a job that never became a mundane set of responsibilities. Her career has been beautiful. The attitude of her resignation is beautiful.

She said, "I used the word 'priveledge' too many times." And "There may be punctuation errors...I just wrote from my heart... I didn't take the time..."

I told her I wouldn't change a thing.  ¶ 8:36 AM 3 comments

  The Indiscretion of Youth Stephanie, is a single mom of a 15 year old boy, and she's my friend. Josh, the son, never knew his dad, who died when he was a baby. Stephanie has always been concerned about the absence of a father in his life. Like any mom, she wants more than anything for Josh to grow up to be a well adjusted, confident person whose character is lacking nothing.

With considerable prayer and deliberation, Stephanie decided to provide a Christian education for Josh. She was moved by the mission of Troy Christian Schools which states, "We exist to uphold God’s truth as we assist parents in the education of their children’s minds and the transformation of their hearts in a Christ-centered learning environment," and "The heart of education is the education of the heart. (Luke 6:45)" Upon admission, they discussed being a “family” as they worked together to not only provide academic training, but spiritual training as well. Josh started first grade in this community and never looked back. Over the years, he became very connected - like family. Significant sacrifices were made to keep Josh in this setting, but he's worth it.

In early February, an upper classman friend called Josh crying. She was a senior and was distraught. The crying friend requested Josh call another student to vent her anger. Josh made the call from home, on the weekend (he thought anonymously). It did not involve the school in any way, but since the school community is a ’family’ they became involved. Josh had used inappropriate language and content. It was ugly.

Josh was suspended from school. At the completion of the suspension, Steph and Josh met with the administration of the school to discuss the situation. It went as you would hope it would go. They began the meeting with prayer, requesting wisdom. They held Josh accountable for his inappropriate behavior. They asked him why they should allow him to continue to be a student at this institution, reminding him he was attending a private school with Christian standards.

Josh informed the administration that he had apologized to the girl he had offended. He acknowledged that the call was offensive and wrong. He was sorry. He signed a contract that he would never participate in this type of activity again. He agreed to meet with the school counsellor. He would do 20 hours of community serivce.

Following their own standard of, 'SALT: Speak, Act, Look, and Think like Jesus', they placed hands on his shoulders and said, “We extend grace to you because Jesus extended grace to us.” He was appreciative. To err is human; to forgive is divine. The meeting ended with an embrace.

On the way home Stephanie received a phone call from the principal. “I’ve changed my mind. Josh is not Troy Christian material.” Steph, stammering, asked, “But, what about grace?” The principal replied, “I didn’t feel good about it.” The options presented were to withdraw or be expelled.

It seems to me that so many aspect of this story are very wrong:

First, the decision to make the call was wrong. The language, tone and content - yep, everything about it was wrong.

Secondly, taking the issue to the school was, in my view, not the best decision. I have not had contact with the offended family, but I think if my daughter got an abusive telephone call and I could identify the kid who did it, he’d be dealing with me in a VERY DIRECT way. There would be no misunderstanding possible when I showed up at his door. I suspect he’d remove our number from his telephone directory - and fast!

Mostly, the administration extending grace, only to revoke it an hour later - that’s wrong! It shocks me that the principal transferred his judgment from the offensive behavior and went straight to character assassination; he's just not "Troy Christian Material." What, exactly, does that mean?

Steph approached the school to inquire about using the school's home school network. She hoped to access the curriculum to finish out the school year. They said no. The school had no concern for his academic progress, spiritual growth, or even fulfilling the contract they had just initiated. He had been kicked to the curb.

“Josh is not Troy Christian material.” In light of recent events, I hope not.  ¶ 4:42 PM 10 comments

  Ahh, The Vanity! My favorite neighbor, a 9 year old playmate of my daughter, was visiting this week. She asked me, "Mrs. P, how old are you?" My best girl shouted, "FORTY!!!" as if that's the largest number imaginable. Kia, the neighbor girl, was agast. She asked, "Is that true, Mrs.P?!?!?" I tried to be confident and self-assured as I confirmed this number. I disagree with the children's assessment that being 40 is undesirable. Kia, still wide eyed in surprise said, "I would have guessed much younger!"
What a nice response! So, I was curious. I asked, "How old would you have guessed?" She looked carefully at me and said, "Twenty one, and very tired... because of the bags under your eyes." I'm so glad I asked.   ¶ 6:50 AM 3 comments

  A Disembodied Head My best girl wants an aquarium theme in her room, so I'll be painting fish for a while. I like to paint. A month or so ago, I painted the blue background, and today, I launched into painting the sea turtle she wants just inside her door.

After pencil sketching an outline, I gathered some paints, a piece of cardboard for a palette, and a few brushes. I began working toward creating a sea turtle where there was none. I like the way the head is looking. It's 9:00 and time to walk away, clean my brushes and call it a night. Unfortunately, that leaves a reptilian-looking-disembodied-head on the wall. It looks funky. (I took a picture but can't figure out how to get it off the camera. Sigh...)

It's a little frustrating to leave a creation unfinished. I'm reminded that God spoke the sea turtle, and all other fascinating creatures, into being - and there they were. Cool.

Yet God does have some unfinished creations. Like me. I wonder if He shakes His head the way I do looking at the disembodied head of the sea turtle, envisioning the finished project and having to wait for fulfillment of the plan.   ¶ 5:52 PM 7 comments

  More To The Story!!! I'm delighted to report there is new information regarding Anna, my husband's recently deceased cousin (see "I Have A Dream, Revisited" from a few days ago).

So here goes...a year ago, she 'retired' from her film making career.
Good stuff, huh? Well, you aint heard nothing yet...

Recently she returned to church and made a committment to follow Jesus. How bout that?!? He was at work; we just didn't know about it.

It appears she's alive.   ¶ 12:51 PM 3 comments

  To Spear, Or Not to Spear? My husband sent me to an article at MSNBC.com entitled, 'Love the Film, Hate the Sin? Christians Debate." It covers Christian's acceptance and rejection of the film,"Into the Spear," and the position of Steve Saint, the person the movie is based on. Since I don't know how to create a link, but I know how to cut/paste, here is the text:

Feb. 6, 2006 issue - Chad Allen: former drug-using teen heartthrob, lapsed Roman Catholic, gay activist and ... Christian missionary. The choice of the openly gay Allen as the lead actor in "End of the Spear," a new Christian-made movie about the real-life story of a son who makes peace with an Amazon tribe that killed his missionary father, has created a dilemma for moviegoers who want to support the movie's message, but not its messenger. "This story is perhaps one of the most precious, well-known mission stories of the last century," says Jason Janz, an assistant pastor in Colorado who brought attention to the issue on his fundamentalist blog, SharperIron.org. "I believe it was bad judgment to cast one of Hollywood's foremost gay activists in the leading role." But, at the same time, other religious leaders—including Jerry Falwell, who has publicly preached against homosexuals—are encouraging their congregations to see the movie.

The schizophrenic response from the Christian community is a blow to the movie's producers, who were hoping for a unified "Passion of the Christ"-type turnout. "It's disappointing," says Jim Hanon, the film's director and co-writer. "Especially because the message of the story is that you should reach out in love to people you disagree with."

When the movie's producers offered the part to Allen, who currently attends a Christian congregation, they didn't know he was gay. (The producers aren't exactly the target audience for The Advocate, which put Allen on the cover when he came out in 2001.) Ultimately, the decision to leave Allen in the role was left up to the man the movie is based on, Steve Saint, since Allen was set to play Steve—and his slain father—in the film. "My dad was my hero, and the thought of someone playing him that advocates that lifestyle made me very uncomfortable," says Saint. "But I realized it wasn't for me to condone or to condemn what Chad does or doesn't do. That is God's prerogative. And I feel that God had his hand in setting up this complex scenario for Chad to play this part."

Not everyone agrees that Allen is God-sent. Janz recently got more than 100 pastors to join him in signing a letter to the movie's producers saying that they couldn't in good conscience support the film. There is, however, one upside to having Allen in the movie. "I'm absolutely sure we're having people check it out that never would have gone to a 'Christian' movie," says Allen. "I went with 30 of my close friends, and we walked away having these amazing spiritual conversations together." Which is exactly what both Saints were trying to do in that Amazon jungle.
—Elise Soukup

I wish it made the paper that the Christian community is united around feeding the hungry, or providing inexpensive babysitting for single moms. Or providing respite for grandparents who are raising their grandchildren. I wish we were accessing the power of Christ to stomp out the power of addiction in our personal lives and then sharing this hope of freedom with others. I wish we were known for taking a stand for loving our neighbors in a way that makes our communities attractive enough to raise property values. I wish we making a stir by praying for our kid and their teachers, and thus improving national test scores.

OK, I'm rambling. I'm sure there are better examples. But isn't there something worth doing out there? Why argue about who plays a part in a movie?
  ¶ 9:15 AM 13 comments