Change

Change...it is a funny term. What does complete change actually mean? Lately I have been confronted with the fact that many of our students have either been exposed to drugs or involved in drug use recently. With this knowledge I was stuck with the question of "What can bring about real change?"

We decided that the best thing to do was to talk. At Western we consider our alumni, parents, friends, & current faculty & students to be apart of Western's community or family. As a family, you get things out in the open. As a family, you trust each other enough to share your heart. So that is exactly what we did. Thursday after chapel we dismissed our middle school students & I began to talk to our high school student body about drug use. We talked about its effects on you as an individual & how it effects everyone around you. We talked about how it can change the course of your life forever. After a long talk we opened the microphone up & allowed the students to share anything that was on their minds. What followed can only be described as an amazing moment in the history of our school.

Student after student got up & shared about their experiences with drugs. Some confessed to being involved in them whether in the past or currently. Some talked about how they have seen it tear apart their families. Others talked about other addictions they currently have not related to drugs, but binding them none the less. It was a time of healing, confession, & restoration. Our theme as a school this year is "One God. One People. One Love." Thursday we were being real before our one God, we stood together united as one people, & we accepted everyone with God's one love. It was a special moment in our school.

Change was aparant in our school that day. Students' lives were changed & never to be the same. Sins were forgiven, trust was gained, & bonds were formed by God's amazing grace.

Pray today that the hearts of students will continue to look to God. Pray that we continue to support all of their students as they walk out true change. Pray that the work that God created in each student would be carried out to completion. Pray that joy would begin to come as freedom is embraced & forgiveness is received.

"Be the change that you want to see in the world." - Mahatma Gandhi

Cultural Awareness Week

This week is our anual cultural awareness week put on by our international club. It offers an opportunity for our students to learn about other cultures & pray for them.

The focus of the week is all the different islands of the world. Please join us in prayer for all missionaries spread throughout the globe as well as peace to all cultures. Also, join us in prayer as we thank God for all of our different culture represented at Western Mennonite School.

Thursday - (1/6/11)

We had the privilege of having Joe Castaneda from Betheny Baptist speak to our student body today. He talked about authentic worship. How we get caught up in going through the motions a lot of times & just want to do the right things, but we miss the real point. Being a Christian is about following after Jesus, about worshipping Him & who He is, not the thought of Him or a good deed or action. The students were encouraged & challenged to not just do something in church or in school because you're supposed to, but really seek out the reason for it & do it with your heart & not just your thoughts. The students had time to reflect on the love of God & How much He loves them.

Today, pray that our students continue to seek after His true love & worship Him in spirit & in truth.

1/5/11 - Middle School Chapel

The Middle School was privileged to have Eddie Peterson & John Wisseman (class of 2011) speak to them this morning. Their focus was that many times as students, we don't understand the power of our words. Our words have the power to uplift or to tear down. They can bring hope or defeat. They can offer love & compassion or judgement & disdain.

Sometimes we never see the fruit of our words, but what I am confident of is that they are important. Jesus called us to "Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."  (NIV, John 13:34-35) Sometimes the best love is an encouraging word or a hug. The fact is people are lonely & hurting in our world. We have the power to change that. We have the power to love, encourage, & genuinely care for people.

Today, I am praying for love to be on the minds of our students. I pray that they will look for ways to be loving, kind & caring to their friends, family, & even strangers. "For this is the message you heard from the beginning: We should love one another." (NIV, I John 3:11)

Thanksgiving

            The holidays are quickly approaching and as I stop to think about Thanksgiving, I am amazed at how much I am thankful for. 1 Thessalonians 5:18 tells us how to be thankful. It says, "In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you." Be thankful in everything. That means to be thankful even if something is hard to be thankful for. Thank God for it anyway because He allowed it in your life to help you in some way.

            Western Mennonite School has been going through a season of change. Just as I look out the window and notice the change in the color of the leaves, the chill in the air, the fog resting above the ground, and the frost on the ground, I am reminded of the great change that has gone on at our school over the past month. We approached our annual Fall Spiritual Renewal Week (Nov. 1^st – 5^th) with great anticipation for God to move among our students as there seemed to be a deep hunger inside them. We went into the first day believing God for the unexpected while realizing that nostalgic, skeptical, and “I’ll believe when I see God” thinking sometimes prevails in our student body.

            As I took the microphone that day to announce our speaker, something was different. The students came expecting to meet with God. They came expecting to encounter something beyond themselves that would alter the very foundation of what they held onto before. As our speaker came up we both felt that we shouldn’t talk much today. So what we decided to do was allow the kids an opportunity to experience God for themselves, pray for each other, and receive prayer if they desired that. What happened next can best be described by one of our 7^th grade female students:

           

“I was amazed as we entered into prayer. God truly came and met with each of us students. I was amazed as I sat back and watched the other students seeking God together. How people were praying for people they normally don’t hang out with, let alone talk to. I was amazed how God began to unify His body, how He broke down barriers between people, how He healed hurting people, how He showed love to those who felt so unlovely, and how He chose to meet us in the exact way we needed. There was a standard set at Western during Spiritual Renewal Week and I feel like this isn’t a spiritual high, but a tangible example of how we can live out God’s love each and every day!”

We spent all 5 days praying and deepening our relationships with God. Relationships were restored, bitterness was released, hearts were mended, brokenness was made whole, emotional and physical healings took place, and every student walked away from the week different. The students practiced their theme first hand of “One God. One Love. One People.” The atmosphere at Western Mennonite School lately has been inspiring. The students are walking in His love and shining their light. They are not just talking the talk, but looking how, in every situation, to walk the walk.

            As we embark on this Thanksgiving season I am so thankful for a school that fosters a spiritual environment. I am so thankful that we have the freedom to put our textbooks to the side and dive into the true textbook (the Bible). I am so thankful that we have a staff and faculty that is committed to pouring themselves into the students and mentor them into a relationship with our loving God. I am thankful that our students are more hungry then ever before.

            Greater things are yet to come here at Western Mennonite School. We are only beginning and we are so thankful for it…

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Robby Gilliam

Spiritual Life Director

Western Mennonite School