Grace Dispenser

You remember the incident in the Old Testament where David takes a census and God is angry with him and another time he takes one and God is pleased???  I understand that a bit more now.

I have taken my own census of sorts this school year EARLY -- 

First off, I should have NEVER done the math to determine how long it's been since my senior year.  What's a number anyway???

Secondly --

As I started this year I admit I checked out my students  profiles – on-line you can tell a lot about your students – who their teacher’s are – what health problems they have – who might faint or was allergic --- who they can’t be near and EVEN when their birthdays are. 

I gave up looking at their school pictures before I met them years ago, because they all looked like juvenile delinquents in some random picture that was put on their profile -- Every year once I met them, I would be so pleasantly surprised at the good-looking bunch of students I had.

We haven’t even talked about those with discipline problems. 

I was disappointed.  I felt they were giving me a boat load of people with lots of issues.  

I was overwhelmed--

I began to approach the school year with dread.

Then we went to professional development where we were told we needed to upgrade all our forms of technology and provide lots of ways for students to be busy and to not teach longer than a few minutes at a time so they wouldn't tune us out. . . AND THE CELL PHONES -- WELL DEAL WITH IT!

Then I read the example of Zaccheus and Jesus and the fact that Jesus CHOSE to hang out with the people with the biggest issues -- the biggest problems.  I started to see that with the concept of building community in my classroom - my students could help each other.  I could be the grace dispenser in the room and help us build a group that took care of each other.  

I realized that I had been feeding this discouragement -- that I could turn it over to the one who cared so much more about them and let each day unfold according to HIS plan.