It is SPIRIT WEEK at Westminster Catawba Christian School.  This includes everything from dress-up days for students and teachers (and boy did some teachers step up today to celebrate “throwback day”), class competitions throughout the week, and our big Homecoming game and dance on Friday evening (9/30).  I highly recommend that you check out our new website (www.wccs.org) and scroll to the bottom and click on our social media avenues to see some of the pictures from the week!

Spirit Week is a great week to step a little out of the normal school routine, foster school spirit, and have a lot of fun.  My favorite part about it, though, is our desire to do all of this while maintaining WHO we are as a school.  We must remain God-centered, other-focused, and Kingdom-minded in all that we do at WCCS – including Spirit Week.  To that end, we have been very intentional at encouraging our students to enjoy the dress-up days, but to remain true to our values as a Christian school.  We enjoy the competitiveness of class activities, but must remember that we are one body with many parts.  Even the planning and implementation of the Homecoming Court and activities in and around the soccer games and welcoming home of alumni retain the same goals.  I will be the first to admit that this is not done without challenge, but am convinced that it enhances the spirit of the school that we all desire!

This goal to be God-centered, other-focused, and Kingdom-minded is not just for Spirit Week – it is every week.  As a matter of fact, we will jump right from Spirit Week to our school’s partnership with Samaritan’s Feet next week in an effort to educate our students in a way that they would desire to bless the world as disciples of Christ.  You can read more about this initiative here:  wccs-samaritansfeet.

May God expand His Kingdom through the Christian education offered at WCCS and at other Christian schools around the country and the world!

In my role as Head of School at Westminster Catawba Christian School, I have the privilege of leading faculty and staff devotions on a weekly basis.  I lead the Lower School faculty on Tuesday mornings, the Upper School faculty on Wednesday mornings, and then the Administrative Team later on Wednesday mornings.  It is a time I look forward to weekly as we dig in to the Scriptures seeking to grow in our vertical relationships with God as well as in ways in which these relationships flow into our horizontal relationships with each other.  For the fall of 2016, we are using a book written by Maurice Roberts, Great God of Wonders, as a kick-off point for our studies.  It is a challenging book that forces the reader to acknowledge the greatness of God and, in turn, His worthiness of praise.  Allow me to share a few lines from Pastor Roberts that we have studied in the last couple weeks.

“To think about God aright is the most exciting occupation possible for any created being.” (p 111)

“To think right thoughts of God is the sum of all blessedness.  Whether we call it theology, meditation, devotion or piety, the practice of fixing our thoughts on God till our hearts are ‘strangely warmed’ is the best bliss we can ever experience on this side of eternity.” (p 112)

“If we meditated on God for half an hour each day we should all be better men.” (p 114)

“How deep are God’s thoughts and ways!  Our familiarity with Bible facts must not dull our sense of wonder.” (p 115)

I expect that these four simple, yet profound, statements are as convicting to you as they are to me.  I must admit that I don’t often consider thirty minutes of just thinking about God as the “most exciting occupation” or “best bliss” this side of eternity.  That is… until I do it.  During our faculty devotions, we have taken a few minutes to simply sit quietly and do nothing except think about God.  We read from the Psalms or from the gospels and then just sit and meditate on the words of Scripture.  Most close their eyes and drift off into thinking more deeply about Him than they had done in a while.  Almost to a person, this brought great smiles to their faces (yes, I peeked!).  We have considered some of those “deep questions” of the faith – why did God create in six days?  why did God allow sin to enter the world?  why did it take so long for Jesus to come?  why is it taking so long for Him to return?  why does Satan seem to wield so much power?  why is there so much pain in the world?

It is an amazing thing to think deeply about God – in the midst of our own circumstances.  As I write, an alum of WCCS is hanging on to life in a hospital in Atlanta.  A family close to our school lost their home in a fire.   My own uncle lies in a hospital bed having just had major surgery and looking ahead to several months of rehab.  Marriages are tenuous.  Children stray.  There is even a hurricane heading in our direction.  While these are all very real, so is the God of the Bible who saw His own Son die on a cross, who comforts those in need, who has heeled the sick, restored families, and even calmed storms on command.

Thinking deeply of God doesn’t necessarily change our circumstances, although it does drive us to our knees in prayer that God answers (there’s another one of those questions – how does prayer really work?).  But, it does give us a new perspective.  It is such a joy to watch our teachers smile at the deep thoughts of God, knowing that they go right from our morning devotions to the classrooms where they share these same truths with our children!

My prayer for all of us is that we would drink deeply of God – daily – and that we would in turn give Him the glory as the God who is above every name!