Monday, December 17, 2012

Pray for a Teacher

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Today as I head back to school, I am unsure what I will face.  Will we have a lockdown drill?  Will my students want to discuss what occurred last Friday in Newtown, Connecticut?  It is a difficult thing to be a teacher.  That job is made even more difficult after an event such as the tragedy that occurred on Friday.  I teach sixth graders.  They need reassurance.  I remember sitting in a class of sixth graders on 9/11 trying to reassure them.  It is difficult to do so when you yourself are unsure.  They always want to know why.  I don't have that answer.  We've been asked to wear a green ribbon in support of Sandy Hook Elementary School as that was one of their school colors.  As I return today I must rely on the following scripture:
Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not rely on your own understanding. Proverbs 3:5 (HCSB)

I cannot teach this scripture in school, since I teach in a public school.  But I can lean on it all day long.  I don't know why the shooting happened.  I just trust that God was there protecting many, and will continue to be with the families.  I grieve with the friends and family who lost so many loved ones.  It was senseless.  I know as I enter my classroom today and every day I will look at my students differently.  I want them to see me as someone who truly cares about them and know that I am willing to lay my life down for them. This is my mom's biggest fear.  I think most teachers, no matter what grade they teach, think of their students as their own kids.  I even go so far as to tell parents at the beginning of the year that I want their kids to consider me their parent away from home.  I will always do what is best for them while showing them how much I love them.  So, on this day when so many teachers are returning to school I ask that you do one thing.  Lift a teacher up in prayer.  Teachers everywhere face some of the toughest challenges and we do it in the face of events like this tragedy.  
Remember to pray for a teacher today.

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