My First Day of Summer

Today was my first day completely free from school! Yeah!!! I slept in 'til 9:30, spent a few hours at the beach.....aaahhh, this is the life. Unfortunately, I still have that feeling of anticipation. Like at spring break...it is a nice break but you know when the week is done you will be back to school. It has not fully hit me that I have three months off! This is the first summer in 7 or 8 years that I will not be working, and my mind has not grasped that yet. I am so thankful to live in Grand Haven, the perfect summer town. We have so many things going on, not to mention the awesome beaches at our disposal nearly 24/7. In GH I am close to family and friends, and will never run out of things to do. With fun, relaxation, and spiritual renewal on the horizon, this promises to be one of the best summers ever!

True Friends

Prayer meeting the last month or so has been a real blessing to me. God has used my prayer time with a variety of ladies to refresh my tired spirit. Through family trials, school stress, and spiritual battles these women have encouraged me and lifted me up before our compassionate, merciful Savior. Last night I was blessed to pray with just Kelli B. We have been friends for several years, and she, like her sister Trish, has much wisdom to offer. I appreciate Kelli because she will not tell me things that make me feel better. She will only tell me biblical truths that cause me to walk closer to God and fulfill His will for my life. Some things she said to me last night were perhaps uncomfortable at first, but I am so glad she said them. I can only praise God for friends who know the Truth and are willing to share it. Kelli's focus last night was pleasing God, not pleasing me. I know God will bless her for the encouragement she has been to me, and I know that I have already been blessed by God in the friendship that I share with Kelli.

Family is Forever

My family, my mom's side that is, is huge and crazy. Huge, loud, and crazy! Uncle Chip and Nicole are the loudest I think =), but we're all pretty loud. Despite our loudness and craziness, or maybe because of it, my family possesses an unbreakable bond. When someone is hurt, family is there. When someone is celebrating, family is there. When we just miss eachother and feel like some fun, family is there! We don't exactly need a reason to get together, we just do it. Some of my favorite family times have been Christmas Eve at Gram and Gramps' house (especially singing around the piano), camping at Hoffmaster together, and Monday (now switching to Tuesday) nights at the beach. Food is always involved, as well as large doses of laughter. Hugs are passed around from one person to the next and back again. We love eachother, protect eachother, cry together, sing together. God has brought our family through some of the highest "ups" and lowest "downs". Through births and deaths, weddings and graduations....God has sustained each one of us through everyone else. Some people have four, five, maybe even ten cousins...I have 24! Three of those cousins I grew up with like sisters, and many of us grew up playing together as friends as well as relatives. My aunts and uncles cared for me like I was one of their own; I suppose I was, really. We all are eachother's. I believe it is only through God, His love for us, and our love for Him that has carried us through the years. Some of the family isn't as close as others, and that is sad for them. They really are missing out on the best family in the world. My heart overflows with love for my family and love for the God Who created each one of us and put us together.

Last Two Days of School

I can hardly believe that school is over! After today I have a year and a half of teaching under my belt. Wow. Time has flown by so quickly my head is spinning. Yesterday I took my class to Crazy Bounce in Holland. Crazy Bounce is a play place full of huge, gigantic inflatable slides, obstacle courses, etc. There is one huge room full of all these things. We spent two hours there, and could have easily made it three. The slides are so high and fast! I played hide & seek and tag with the kids and went on all the "toys". It really is a kids place I guess, but I had a blast. =)
After lunch at Wendy's we went on a class bike ride on our beautiful bike path by the school and came back for ice cream sundaes with all the fixin's. It was a gorgeous day outside, and a perfect day all around.

At the end of our half day today I took my class outside to play with some new toys I bought. I found these soft, flexible, cloth disc things that are 2' in diameter. They are light as a feather and fly really far. My kids had a blast throwing them to eachother out in the school yard.

On a more serious note, I had my students write letters to me criticizing my work as a teacher. One of our vocab words this week was criticism, so we talked about the fact that it means evaluating both good and bad points. They were a little nervous about telling me negative things, but I assured them I wanted to learn from them and hear what they had to say. I knew there were some things that many of them would write about, such as my impatience, my tendency to get overly frustrated, etc. But reading the letters was hard! I don't like to be criticized (does anyone!?) but I knew it was good to hear from the students. They were so kind and loving in their criticism, too. I can tell they love me very much and just want me to be the best teacher I can be. God truly blessed me with a great class this year. They handled this letter- writing assignment so well, I am truly thankful for each one of them. I also praise God for the work He can do to help me become a better teacher as I yield to His dierction.

When a Teacher Stand Up for a Student

You'd think that in a Christian school teachers shouldn't have to deal with bullying. Well, we do. Christians may be filled with the Holy Spirit, but we are still sinners by nature. The past several weeks some of my students have been picking on each other, mainly one boy in particular. Today it just went to far, actually to the point of bullying. Don't worry, no one was beat up or hurt, just picked on too much. I was going to address the issue with the individuals involved, but I decided to talk to the entire class about the issue. I took the class to 1 John 4:7-8, 11, 18, 22, etc. We talked about the love of God that should be in us if we claim to be Christians. The verses pointed out, too, that our love for other believers should be especially strong. How dare we say "I love God" then turn around pick on another believer alongside whom we are too be sharing the Gospel message?! I can only pray that the Word of God touched the hearts of those students involved, and the rest of the class as well. I don't like to confront even youngsters, but I had to stand up against sin and stand up for right. Now my students know that I will not, and cannot, tolerate bullying of any degree. And it's not just because I personally don't appreciate it, but because it goes against the Word of God! That is what I wanted my students to see today. I explained why we were having the discussion, pointed them to the passage, then let the living Word of God do the talking. His Words are a thousand times more powerful than mine. His Words can pierce even to the dividing of soul and spirit. Only God's Word can change my students' lives so that's what I showed them.

Graduation...Looking Back

Tonight Alicia and Lana graduated from LBA as the 20th graduating class of the school. That means I was the 14th graduating class of LBA. Six years since I graduated from high school. Six years of learning and growing, six years of heartaches and joys, six years that sped by so fast I can hardly remember what happened! Of course, my biggest memory of the last six years is the four years I spend at Maranatha. Those were the "growing-ist" years of my life. The people, the classes, the experiences all worked together to mold me into who I am today. I should say, God used all those things to mold me. When I look back at who I was when I started college my heart is full of awe at what God has done. Moment by moment, day by day, year by year He has graciously, tenderly stripped away the dirt in my life to make me a vessel clean and ready for His use. Tonight Alicia quoted 2 Timothy 2:21 which says that those who cleanse themselves from everything that is dishonorable will be a holy, honorable vessel prepared for every good work. As God has worked in me, so I have had to make choices to get to this place. It is my choice to separate from all that is ungodly to all that is holy. Quite a concept: I must make the choice, but it is only in God's power that I can follow through with those choices!

I was so proud of the young women who graduated tonight. They are far beyond the spiritual level I was at when I graduated. These two, Lana and Alicia, have already stepped out of their comfort zone many times, taken risks for Christ, and thought about how they will live for Him in the future. They are ready to go, ready to stand up and shout out Christ's holy name. I wish I had been there when I was a high school senior. But, I am grateful that God took me from where I was at that time and pushed me to where I am today. Still growing, still learning....a sinner saved by grace.

Education for Eternity

Friday.....the day every working person looks forward to; the day the work- week ends and the weekend begins. Today was a good Friday. During the second half of the day the entire student body participated in a field day. Praise the Lord, we had a clear and sunny day to play. One of the benefits of having a small school is the ability to get everyone together at the same time. We were able to create teams with kids from K5 to 12th grade on them. I love watching the junior and senior high students step into the leadership roles and come alongside the younger students during the games. Our students at LBA have awesome school spirit. I praise God for the safe, godly environment in which our students receive a well- rounded, Bible- based education. And I am blessed to be part of the ministry of LBA.

Moses Stood Up

By faith Moses chose to suffer affliction with the people of God rather than enjoy the passing pleasures of sin. (Hebrews 11:25) He chose suffering. No one in their right mind should choose suffering. But Moses had a mind guided by God; guided by faith. Choosing to stand alongside other believers and suffer is a hard choice. Right now there are things in life that I would much rather focus on;, things that are nothing but passing pleasures. When people are remembering me at my funeral some day, I pray they will be quoting this verse about me. "Lindsey (or mom, grandma, etc.) made an evident choice in life. She chose to stand by God's people to serve and suffer and to ignore the passing pleasures of sin." I know that won't be true of my entire life. Goodness, I have given in to the passing pleasures of sin more times than I care to recount. But that was then, and from now on I have the opportunity to make this verse true about my life. Probably the most significant word in this verse is the word "chose." Moses made a definite choice. He didn't wait around to decide what felt right, he chose to do what was right. Choosing God's way isn't always going to feel right or good, but if it truly is God's way it will be both right and good. For that I sing His praises. I have to make choices, big ones. By faith I want to choose to suffer with God's people...I want to choose to do things God's way. How sad for my life to be filled with things that won't last, things that will burn up when I stand before God. What are you choosing for your life? Are you choosing to suffer, or to sin? As a word of encouragement if you are struggling with this choice, Romans 8:18 says "For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared to the glory which will be revealed in us."

See My Lake

Last night I took a walk on the beach and the pier. I always find that to be incredibly relaxing. It was a bit breezy and cool, but not unbearable. The sky was clear; a perfect night for pictures. Here are some that I took. Maybe when you see how beautiful it is here you will come and visit!!

Have Mercy!

Mom's in the hospital again for her heart. This time we came to Mercy. Everyone says it's better than NOCH. Aunt Lynda (RN) works here; so does my cousin Jeff (Dr.). They ended up admitting her and we will probably be here all weekend. Oy! Family has been up to visit, of course. We stick together through thick and thin...and in our family it's usually pretty thick! Pray for us.....Thanks!

Answered Prayer

This story is a few months old, but in light of my upcoming trip I wanted to share it with everyone. Last year the car I had been driving died. It was a little red Neon that belonged to my parents. "The little flying red tomato" served me well during college, but I guess the trips back and forth to Wisco. were just to much for her. So for many months I prayed and looked and looked and prayed for a new car. I decided to pray specifically. I prayed for low(or decent) mileage, clean and nice looking, a Cd player, and something within my price range. I found several cars that would have been sufficient, but none of the vehicles were exactly what I was praying for. God can provide anything, so I didn't want to limit Him. I said "No" to everything that did not fit my prayer request. Finally, at the end of August, I spotted a little black Focus not too far from my house on Beacon Blvd. I talked TAD into taking me to look at it. It was a practically-brand-new-looking 2001 Ford Focus hatchback. Low miles, in my price range, super clean and nice, and a Cd player! I knew immediately that this was what I had been praying for. TAD went with me again to test drive it, and I bought it on September 1. I am so grateful for the car God has provided me, and I tell this story any chance I get.

This summer my "little cricket", as I like to call her, will take mom and me on our road trip south and west. I have no doubt that she will get us there and back with no trouble at all. And being such a small car, she gets pretty good gas mileage too!

Making Plans

The whole point of my road trip this summer is to not have a set schedule. I want to go at my own pace, see the things I want to see, and get to San Diego whenever I get there! Mom wholeheartedly agrees. However, there are a few things that we actually plan to do/see on the way there, while we are there, and on the way home. Here is a list of a few of the things we are going to do/see and links so you can check them out for yourself!

the Gateway Arch (St. Louis) www.gatewayarch.com
Mud Island River Park (Memphis) www.mudisland.com
Beale Street (Memphis) www.bealestreet.com
Balboa Park (San Diego) www.balboapark.com
the San Diego Zoo www.sandiegozoo.org
The Midway Aircraft Carrier Museum (San Diego) www.midway.org
Grand Canyon National Park (Arizona, of course) www.grand.canyon.national-park.com

Random Thoughts

It's been a while since I have shared my thoughts here. Not many people read this blog though so I don't know if it matters too much really. Having this blog has made me realize how unexciting my life is. Don't get me wrong...I am incredibly busy and blessed. Every night of the week I am off doing something, and I house/dog/kid sit just about every other week it seems. I think the thing is that every week is the same. Nothing really changes. But that's ok. I like my life. It does seem too easy though. Since I work with other believers, I rarely have opportunity to mingle with unbelievers and be challenged in my faith. I have been hearing about believers in other countries, other situations, who are losing their lives or at least facing grave danger because of their open faith. My life is safe, comfortable, and totally risk- free. If I really lived like Christ could return at any moment, I don't think my life would be so sweet and easy. On the flip side of all this I am grateful for safety, freedoms, plenty of food and clothing (and I do mean plenty! You should see my cupboards and my closet). But how can I step out and take some risks? Sitting around and waiting for risks to come to me...well, that's just silly. This summer I am going to let God change my life. In my lovely, wonderful world God can make a difference in me if I let Him. It seems to me that when a person opens their schedule, wallet, etc. to God and asks Him to do with it as He pleases, He is more than happy to oblige! That right there is risky business. One must count the cost of service to Christ because to go back on one's commitment....oh, that's bad. Am I ready to pay the price? To take up my cross and truly follow Christ as I ought? I guess we'll find out.