Lord, Teach us to Pray

Luke 11:1- Lord, teach us to pray.

Today at ECA in both middle and elementary we were able to gather with our students to lift up Colombia. There is a very important vote taking place on Sunday, and the Colombian Evangelical church has claimed today, Sept. 30, a day of prayer. ECA students and teachers decided to take part during school hours and together we lifted up voters, political leaders and asked God to bring Biblical peace to this beautiful country.

Students in elementary met with small group leaders praying for about an hour this morning. We spent time reading and meditating on verses, praying for political leaders by name, asking for God to give wisdom to voters and expressing through art our dreams for Colombia.

My prayer for students as they move forward is as follows: "if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land." (2 Chronicles 7:14).

Kinder students drawing pictures of their dream for their country

Art work from Elementary and Middle school was hung in the stairs

Praying together and drawing dreams of Colombia

Kinder students praying together for Colombia

More kinder students praying

PK students also got to pray together

Copying and meditating on verses about prayer

4th graders drawing dreams for Colombia

1st graders praying together

More 1st graders praying together for the election

Third graders praying and writing verses

Writing verses and praying for peace

Now let's talk a little about this election. For 56 years, the socialist group, the FARC has terrorized many parts of Colombia, pushing the military into a brutal battle. For the past 4 years leaders of the FARC and Colombia have met with international peacemakers to draft a treaty between the two organizations.

Because of the many implications of this treaty, the ultimate decision of whether it is signed will be left to the people of Colombia. This Sunday a vote will take place of "yes" or "no".

Peace sounds so good, but what makes this controversial is the fine print of this almost 300 page document. Many people worry that the treaty is too nice; FARC leaders are not given the justice they deserve. They also worry that through this treaty FARC leaders will be guaranteed positions in both the senate and the house of representatives. By allowing leaders from a different political ideology it will influence the political direction Colombia will take in the future.

On the other hand, there is promise of rehabilitation for those in the drug trade, restoration of farm land, and rebuilding of communities destroyed by the conflict.

In the end, there is no easy answer. Regardless of the outcome there will be many long-term implications for Colombia and international relations. It is interesting to be in the midst of such an important time in Colombian history.

If you are interested in learning more here are some articles with information on the vote and conflict in Colombia:

Explaining Colombia's Peace Plebecite

Colombia's Peace Talks Fact Sheet

What is at Stake in the Colombian Peace Process

Serve the Lord with all your heart!

One of the biggest joys of working at ECA is the focus on serving others starting from a young age. Once again, my PK class was able to go to the nursing home and serve the grandparents. This is one of my favorite events of the year because my students get to practice what they are learning.

We start the day by chopping lots and lots of fruit for a giant fruit salad.

Then we changed into traditional dress for the dance presentation. This year we decided to have students do the dance presentation from celebrate Colombia presentation, and students were excited to perform again.

We piled into vans and headed off to the neighboring town for our time of service.

We started off dancing, then sang a few songs in both English and Spanish.

Then students walked around, greeted the grandparents, colored pictures with them, and some did puzzles. We also handed out the snack of the fruit salad.

Every visit, God speaks to my heart through the loving service of my students.

While chopping fruit my students were saying "oh, make it small in case the grandparents don't have teeth" Or "Wow, mango, that's my favorite, I hope the grandparents like it too!"

On the ride there my students were excited and eager to arrive.

And the most amazing, the moment we walked into the nursing home my students were so loving! They greeted the grandparents without fear. While dancing and singing they were focused and joyful to share God's love through performance. And when it was time to serve the snack and talk with the grandparents, most were excited and eager to reach out.

I can't think of a more beautiful picture than seeing my students willing, able and joyfully serving others.

Love your neighbor

As a teacher of PK I love to intentionally plan fun and meaningful activities for my students. This week we have been learning about the parable the good Samaritan focusing on God's love for us. Three years ago I found a great picture that shows how the Good Samaritan is a reflection of Christ. Although my students developmentally are not really for big abstract concepts, I thought I would see what they thought of the picture.

As I asked them what they saw, most reflected on the Good Samaritan helping the stranger or the donkey. However after probing deeper they recognized the cross. As I asked them why the cross was there, a light went on for many students as they realized that the cross is God's love, just like the Good Samaritan is God's love. Although my students are small, I am so blessed to build into them a deeper and more meaningful understanding of God's GREAT love for us. 

As a time of personal reflection, I asked each student to draw a picture of them helping another person. The majority chose to draw helping a friend who had fallen and gotten hurt- well connected with the Good Samaritan story- and as I asked them if they were showing God's love, you could see their pleasure with knowing they were reflecting Christ to one another. As a representation of that love, I would draw a cross on their picture like the example. My hope is that  as they see their art, they can internalize that they can be God's love to others- just like the Samaritan!

My work as a teacher is more than teaching English or how to count or how to be a good friend. My job as a teacher is to bring each one of my students little bit closer in their relationship with God. I can't think of a better job in the world!

Fall Festivities

Growing up in Oregon, I can argue that fall is one of the most beautiful times of the year. The leaves change colors to brilliant oranges, yellows and reds. Rain has not yet set in so the air feels crisp and fresh. Everyone takes trips to farms to find the perfect pumpkin to decorate the house. It's a refreshing, fun time of year.

Living in Colombia- one of the most naturally beautiful countries I have seen- means that there are no seasons. As part of our school curriculum to teach USA culture, kinder introduces the concept of seasons to students growing up in a season-less climate. This year the kinder teacher asked if my PKers would like to join her class for a fall celebration to help students really understand the fun and beauty of fall. Missing the States more than usual I quickly agreed!

We contacted parents and planned a fun afternoon of all things fall! Hay rides (in a wagon), a pumpkin patch, bobbing for apples, photo booth, and the classic donut on a string activity. We also had parents make traditional fall treats: pumpkin bread, apple crisp, and pumpkin pie. Students got to see, fell and taste the fall season from many parts of the USA and I got to abate my homesickness!

Off to a great start!

PK has had a great start! We have been enjoying our first unit studying creation. As we continue to work hard to clarify and perfect our curriculum, I am overwhelmed by how blessed I am to build in my students a strong foundation of the Bible. My students get hands-on learning experiences to know who God is and what he has done for us. 

We start every year by studying God's perfect creation. Then as we see how man feel away from God but God still loves us. We see His plan come into place through the arrival of the Savoir. As we discover the life of Jesus we can see how we are to live in a way that honors God. At the end of our year we see that Jesus radically change the world through His followers and their legacies.

Units:

Creation

Fall of Man (Adam and Eve, Noah)

Christmas

Jesus' Life

Easter

Early Church

Here are some highlights of our creation unit so far:

Creation week 1- Yellow day!

Creation day 2- water!

Creation day 3- Making a land collage!

Day 3- Making land and plants with playdough and pipe cleaners

Day 3- Land and plants!

Playing with moon dough

New Year!

It's hard to believe summer vacation is over and it's time to start a new year. This year in PK I am so blessed to have many families allow me to teach a younger sibling of a former student, as well as welcome new families to ECA

Monday we had the privilege in PK to have an open house and began to build relationships with this year's families. We ate lunch together, chatted and I shared some key information on being a PK parent. It seemed to relax a lot of anxious mothers! Friday was the opening day for all school, where we spent 2 hours with the kids, while the parents were in a meeting. Afterward we ate together and several classes planned fun carnival games.

This year our school theme is "love" and I am excited to allow my students to grow in their understanding of how much God loves them. As a teaching staff we have been discussing how we can love each other better, though intentional community and fellowship together. I am excited to see how God is going to use His word this year to grow me and my ability to love my students, their parents, my co-workers and the community He has given to me in Bogota.

Here is the classroom this year... I went with a "balloon" theme and have made good use of my die cut machine!

Calendar set up

Balloons on the floor to line up

Birthday wall

All elementary rules applied in PK

New book shelf will make books even more exciting for my kids!

We also got an art easel for the students to use. The rectangles on the wall will highlight student work.

My new students enjoying their classroom today.