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Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him [her].

(Matthew 14:31)
Jesus Walking on the Paper (Part I)
It was Ellen Gates third year of teaching first grade at Scarborough Elementary in
Freeport, Texas. It was time to click the submit button on her computer screen and send her
students twelve week grades to the main district server. As she clicked the mouse she
simultaneously began to reflect on and evaluate her own first twelve weeks performance.
Ellens mind took her back to early August when she had attended her very first
summer conference for Christian educators in public schools. It was held at Scarborough
Elementary so she decided to attend because it was so convenient. At the conference one of the sessions was titled The Forty
Minute Fast. During this session Ellen spent forty minutes alone with the Lord, a pen, journal and her Bible. During this time she
was to discern Gods personal message to her, several God objectives and banner scriptures to pray throughout the coming
school year. This plan was called an IESP (Individualized Educational Spiritual Plan).
This was a strange uncomfortable exercise for Ellen because she went to church every Sunday and was active there but
she never spent time alone with God listening to His voice. It was something brand new. She wondered, Why would God talk to
me personally? I am no super spiritual person.
During this Forty Minute Fast exercise, Ellen was led, by the Lord, out on the playground beneath a giant sprawling oak
tree and she climbed up into the large wooden toy that was shaped like a fishing boat. She sat on a bench in the prow of the boat
and opened her Bible. God led her to read the familiar excerpt of Jesus walking on the water (Matthew 14:22-32). As she read
the passage, tears filled her eyes and she had flashbacks of her two previous school years.
She had been the first person in her family to graduate from college and this job, in education, was a step of faith out of
the boat experience for her. She was the oldest child in her family and her parents and siblings all looked up to her. Her last
school year at Scarborough Elementary had been a daunting challenge. She felt like she was drowning in paper and computer
work. She had been reprimanded twice by the principal the previous year for the late submission of required paper work. One
more reprimand and a comment would have been placed in her permanent file and a professional growth plan started even
though the academic growth of her students was the highest of the four first grade classes. Ellen was great with students,
curriculum, and parents but paperwork was her weakness, one of the last personal priorities of her job. It was always students,
instruction, and parents first. She was outstanding at diversifying instruction, which took much time to organize and create.
A partial list of Ellens paperwork requirements included: (1) weekly lesson plans with correlated state objectives
documented, (2) required additional documentation for all her ESL, 504, and special needs students, (3) DRA records, (4)TPRI
records, (5) parent contact log, (6) running reading records (anecdotal notes) on every child recorded every two weeks,
(7) campus, district, and state surveys, (8) grade reporting every three weeks, (9) documentation of re-teaching and retesting for
every failed test by every child, (10) reading and responding to every email that came to her constantly from numerous people
and departments from many different levels of the district, (11) daily attendance and (12) grading papers.
Wave after wave was pounding and suffocating her spirit and love for youth and education. She seemed to be spending
almost as much time behind her computer or desk before and after school as she did actually teaching during the day. It was
overwhelming. Twelve hour days were standard. She wondered when she would ever have time for dating, marriage or a family.
As Ellen sat in the boat that summer on the playground she wiped the tears from her eyes, closed her Bible, and opened
her journal with her pen in hand and began to write what she believed Jesus was personally speaking to her.
Drowning Ellen,
I am I AM and I am walking out to you over the paper and across your computer screen. Take your eyes off the
waves, the required paper after paper and screen after screen. See my nail pierced hand. Hold onto it throughout this
new year and you will not drown. I am the captain of your boat, not you, the principal, district, state, or federal government.
The government of education rests on my shoulders, not theirs or yours. Keep your eyes on me and hold my hand.
Love Always,
Captain Jesus
Prayer: Jesus, help us see you and hold on to your hand when we feel as though we are professionally drowning.
Reflection: When was I ever professionally drowning? Explain. What grade would Jesus give me this first 12 weeks and why?
Getting Real: Keep a Jesus journal on your desk at school. Decorate it and write letters to and from Him while at school.
CLASSROOM LIGHTHOUSE SERIES: Love Ladders Love Matters (For info or prayer contact ceaihouston@sbcglobal.net.) WEEK 12
Photo Sinking In To Water by koratmember at freedigitalphotos.net

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