Dec 13, 2022 | Care Conversations
Student Leadership 19
It is time to attempt a review of our approach to student leadership.
Firstly, the principles and purposes of leadership need to be understood, developed and practiced.
Then, leaders put leadership into practice through their own giftings, personalities and situations – there is no “model” leader.
Importantly, the development of Leadership involves faith, knowledge, values, respect, character and skills – all of which have to be intentionally cultivated.
That development will include knowledge and understanding, opportunities for action and guided reflection.
The Biblical model shows us that Leadership involves teams of people. We are designed with particular giftings, but no-one has all the giftings – this is God’s wonderful design to cause us to be dependent upon Him and inter-dependent with one another. So “lone-wolf” leadership is not our goal.
Leaders will undertake tasks and actions which will steer growth and change, causing development and improvement.
Leadership also has a strong emphasis on developing people; developing a culture of respect and shalom. Therefore, leaders will help to develop a focus upon gratitude and celebration, courage, discipline and correction, lament, compassion, justice and mercy
At early levels of schooling, engaging in activities like Class Meetings with clear guidelines and purposes give all students opportunities to understand and practice leadership.
Our pedagogical practices throughout the whole curriculum should provide opportunities for courageous curiosity and critique.
Mentoring is very useful in helping young people to understand their own giftings and to be challenged in faith and practice. Mentoring should not be restricted to teachers only; many administrative staff or local pastors could become effectively involved.
As students progress through school, more informal and formal opportunities to lead should be provided. This leadership should be more extensive than simply managing an event. It should involve purposeful and positive culture enhancement.
At middle and upper levels of schooling, student leaders become representatives of the school community. They must therefore have the heart, the understanding, the character and skills to do this well.
Paul, encouraging his young friend Timothy, says
“Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.” [1]
Let us pray this for our young people.
Blessings
Brian
[1] 1 Timothy 4:12
Dec 6, 2022 | Uncategorized
An End, A Beginning and inspiration for the Journey
At this time of year, with only a few days of school left, student reports have been sent, class parties are in full swing, and admin and management are busy wrapping up as well as making plans for next year. The slow starting Term 4 is now nearly over, the school year is hurtling towards its last day, students have ‘switched off’, and an exhausted group of teachers are looking forward to a well-earned rest.
An End
At this time of year, on many Church billboards, etc, we see the sign
“Jesus is the reason for the season”
Christmas time, while being a wonderful celebration of our Lord and Saviour, is also a very busy time of year, at the end of a very busy school year. To some, it feels as is Christmas is also hurtling towards us with fever pitch speed. In the shops decorations go up straight after Halloween and there doesn’t seem to be | a break | from one major event to the next. A breather, a break, time to think, and reflect. And then the end of Christmas is the end of the year – downtime to rejuvenate.
An End, but also A Beginning
As much as it may be tempting to ‘get through Christmas’, there is so much more to it. Some people feel the sign “Jesus is the reason for the season” is used so often that it has lost its impact, similar to other Christmas traditions. It’s human nature to ‘get so used’ to a saying, a phrase, a habit, that we don’t feel its impact anymore and want something fresh and new: something to lift the heart and spirit.
Have you found yourself falling into that trap? That the old, well-worn phrases are losing their power and impact, and that you yearn for something fresh every Christmas? A desire to remember that there is so much more to these repeated phrases – a promise and a fresh beginning?
A Beginning and a Journey
One of the books I am currently reading is Mr Eternity, the story of Arthur Stace, retelling his life before and after his conversion and the amazing impact of writing one word for 35 years on many Sydney streets and pavements: Eternity. The response can be summed up in a quote from Mrs Jenny Story, who as a child spotted a chalked Eternity near her house. “We are all totally hooked in our moment-to-moment troubles. Mr Stace’s word is like a bucket of cold water, a wake-up call that puts these things into perspective.”
An Eternity perspective helps to ground us, calling us to keep going on our life’s journey with Him, giving us purpose and hope in Him.
Isaiah visualises our purpose and hope: “The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor, to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn and provide for those who grieve in Zion, to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of His splendour.” (Isaiah 61: 1-3)
That is us – the Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on us, binding, proclaiming, releasing, comforting, bestowing and sharing the oil of gladness and garments of praise. We are the oaks for the display of His splendour.
What an honour, what a privilege, and what a blessing it is at Christmas to have these opportunities available to us – when people’s hearts are softer, more open, and searching.
An End, a Beginning and inspiration for the Journey
This Christmas, may we keep an Eternity perspective as we hear the Lord say, “See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.” (Is 43:19) Let us be inspired by Him once again.
As our school community farewells the students, may we receive afresh the Hope of Christmas, and share this Hope with those around us this Christmas season – spilling over into 2023.
References
Williams, R., & Meyers, E., (2017). Mr Eternity, the story of Arthur Stace. Acorn Press (taken from an email from Mrs Jenny Story to Elizabeth Meyers, 18/11/11)
Dec 6, 2022 | Teachers Talking
Talk 4: Looking back to go forward….
Peter Pan is a fictional character, created by Scottish novelist J.M. Barrie. A free-spirited and mischievous boy who can fly and never grows up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending childhood on the mythical island of Neverland, as the Leader of the Lost Boys. He is an exaggerated stereotype of a free-spirit, self-centred child, being too young to be burdened with the effects of education or to have an appreciation of moral responsibility. Time makes little difference to him. When you never grow up, life is nothing but fun, whimsy and adventure. Walt Disney said of him, “He is twelve years old because he refuses to grow up beyond that comfortable age.” [1]
With the loss of authority in human institutions and the rise of the autonomous individual, we have seen the disregard for wisdom passed on from one generation to the next. Marcus Tullius Cicero, the great Roman philosopher and orator wrote, “Not to know what happened before you were born is to remain always a child. For what is the worth of life unless it is woven into the life of our ancestors by the records of history?” [2]
Moses, the leader of God’s people, spoke to inspire and remind the Israelites of their covenant relationship with Yahweh and their calling to worship and love him with their whole being. In the future, when they entered the Promise Land and the children asked, “What is the meaning of the stipulations, decrees and laws the Lord our God has commanded you?” (Deuteronomy 6: 20) [3] which is code for why do we live this way?, the adults were to respond by telling them the Exodus story. This story is of their deliverance from slavery in Egypt and the gift of the promised land where they could flourish in their new life. In this way, children were instructed to live according to their identity which God had graciously bestowed upon them. Wisdom was about loving God and learning to live God’s way through the practice of truth embodied in the life of the community. (Deuteronomy 6: 7- 9). It was about being faithful to God expressed in obedience to His commandments in the midst of the challenges of sin and idolatry (Deuteronomy 6: 13–16) that surrounded them. They were to live genuine human lives that would be a light to the nations and reflect the reality of the living God. This was to be in stark contrast to the idolatrous nations surrounding them.
Christ is our Exodus, but in western culture Christians sometimes have lost an appreciation of the whole Biblical story, whose climax and meaning is found in Christ as well as the past two thousand years of church history. Os Guinness reminds us that this means we and our children are “condemned to live Peter Pan lives in a never-never land of the present, with little knowledge of the past (or much care for the future) to inspire their heroism, to season their wisdom and to protect their steps from the pitfalls into which previous generations have fallen.” [4]
But the fast life, of instant information about everything as it happens, has shifted our thinking to the ‘up-to-date’, and the rapid pace of change leaps us into the future so the wisdom of the past now seems out-dated. History is often seen as irrelevant.
On the other hand, paradoxically, people are yearning to know their past, where they come from and where they belong. Ancestry.com is one of the most frequented sites on the internet. The Scriptures and history demonstrate that “the church always goes forward best by going back first.” [5]
As Christian teachers, we are called to serve God’s purpose in our generation – knowing our heritage that we may understand our present and move courageously into the future. We go back to an historical person who is alive and has been at work in the lives of those both past and present, to bring new life to His creation. Our faith and our personal lives – all that we are, think and do, are to reflect the way of Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour and the truth and wisdom of God’s Kingdom, as revealed in His Word.
God the Son came, the ultimate human being, who in His person, was the embodiment of the Creator’s love. For He fulfilled God’s promise that He would come and live with those He created. The self-giving love that Jesus demonstrated and lavished on the poor, the sick, the sinful and the dying is what it looks like when the Creator “pitches His tent” in our midst. The Cross demonstrates that love is the most powerful thing, for it takes the worst that humans can do, absorbs it and defeats it. Christ’s resurrection says yes to new creation and “with it, to the love that all humans know in their bones is central to what it means to be human.” [6] As we approach this Christmas season with our students, may we tell them the greatest love story of all time and stories of those who through time, have demonstrated such love. We can involve our students in acts of service that reflect the self-giving love of Jesus to others, demonstrating what it means to live out a better story,
The desire to reveal Jesus is deep in the heart of many Christian teachers around the globe. May our hearts be deeply committed towards nurturing our students to live genuine human lives of meaning, purpose and love, now and into the future. For they will only know what it means to truly flourish when they draw near to the One whose image they are to bear. At the end of the school year, may we be inspired to continue to go deeper with Christ and continue to share this profound purpose into the future.
“Here we stand. Unashamed and assured in our own faith, we reach out to people of all other faiths with love, hope, and humility. With God’s help, we stand ready with you to face the challenges of our time and to work together for a greater human flourishing.”[7]
“Grace and Peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” Ephesians 1: 3
Grace and Peace
The TEC Team
[1] https: Disney.fandom.com/wiki/Peter_Pan_
[2] https:quotepark.com/quotes/1286666-marcus-tullius-cicero
[3] NIV
[4] OS Guinness, Renaissance – The Power of the Gospel However Dark the Times, (Downers Grove: InterVasity Press, 2014), 121.
[5] Ibid 133
[6] Nicholas Tom Wright, Broken Signposts – How Christianity makes sense of the World, (New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 2020), 55.
[7] Os Guinness, Renaissance-The Power of the Gospel However Dark the Times, (Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 2014), 179
Dec 6, 2022 | Care Conversations
Student Leadership 18
There are many community groups and organisations which can support and encourage leadership amongst our young people.
A number of schools are involved in the “Model United Nations” program. This body encourages the consideration of National and Global issues, through which the scope of our students understanding can be expanded.
Students do not only get to consider and discuss their “pet topics” or even simply issues with which they agree. They may have to articulate a position on an issue that is contrary to their own opinion or viewpoint. This becomes a healthy exercise in understanding other world and life views and considering how other people, cultures and societies may see things differently.
In Australia and New Zealand, the Compass Student Leaders’ Conference is a great way for senior students from different schools to interact and grow in their understanding of Biblical Christian Leadership. Other parts of the world may be able to connect remotely. To get an understanding of content and approach, a guide booklet can be downloaded here.
Arrow Leadership also provide support for the development of young people; their site makes useful blog posts available also.
Many schools are involved with the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award.
In Europe ACSI provides a number of opportunities for the development of leadership in young people.
The Global Christian Schools Network is another great opportunity for Leadership and Service – we will be meeting together in Colmar, France in October 2023.
Lots of opportunities![1]
Blessings Brian
[1] By indicating these Leadership opportunities, I am not preferring them above other providers, nor am I suggesting that all of them provide opportunities that are suitable for your situation, please do your own researcher and analysis
