Your School Needs Jesus

My wife welcomed her new 3^rd graders at our local elementary school last week.  Our communities’ students, teachers & school staffs need prayer as they begin a new year.  I believe that they need Jesus’ guidance and blessings this year.  Every year, teachers continue to learn new educational tools, methods, & skills.  Administrators and staff face new challenges in meeting the needs of today’s students.

The first 5 books of the Old Testament were called the Torah or the Law.  Rabbi’s back then taught the Torah to their young students, so that children grew up knowing that God had created the world and done marvelous things through Abraham and Moses.  As the decades and centuries went by, God’s Spirit lead the Israelites to add the books of history and poetry (Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon) to its sacred Scriptures, and the prophetic books came later.   

In the New Testament, Jesus was known especially for teaching; He was a Jewish rabbi.  He taught outdoors as well as in the synagogue.  He taught hard, new ways to interpret the Old Testament, especially in Matthew 5-7, his famous sermon on the mountain.   Each gospel presents a different side of Jesus’ ministry; so take the time to read each of them.  Some of his stories made religious leaders look bad and outcast minorities look good, such as the parable of the Good Samaritan, or the Pharisee and tax-collector who prayed in the Temple. 

I appreciate the time my employer gives me for continuing education, to keep learning.  No matter how old we get, there’s always something more to learn.  I hope to keep learning for many years, partly because learning new things keeps one young by introducing new things into one’s life, no matter what your age.  No matter how old you and I get, there’s always more to learn about Jesus and following Him as our Savior and Master.  To learn about following Jesus, read the first 4 books of the New Testament and spend time praying to God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  A church in your community can also you learn about Jesus.

Pray for the school in the district where you live.  These are challenging times for students and everyone involved in educating them.  Every school needs Christ and his Spirit’s guidance, protection, mercy and gracious love.  Your local school needs Jesus.  Pray that every Christ-follower in your local schools will be a light in a dark world.