It is no secret that, because of the fall of Adam and Eve, the world in which we live is full of sin and calamity. Our Lutheran schools are not exempt from this calamitous condition. Students and their families, as well as church workers and their families, face all sorts of struggles—be it debilitations and diseases, hardships and heartaches, even death and destruction. To illustrate this, just this year, in the Lutheran high school where I am blessed to serve, we have had students undergo major surgeries, family members diagnosed with cancer and other dreadful diseases, and a family displaced because of a devastating home fire.
Despite living in a sin-filled, calamity-ridden world, we are blessed to have the message of the Gospel. Our Lutheran schools have the unique opportunity to expose our students to the Gospel every day! What a blessing it is that our students get to hear this life-changing Gospel message through religion and theology classes, chapels, and daily devotions! United to Him by faith, we are strengthened and empowered by God’s Word to live in Christ. We are reminded in 2 Corinthians 5:17 that “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” The fellowship that our Lutheran schools provide helps us to embody this new creation—by living together in Christ.
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On this side of eternity, there will always be struggles because of sin. There will be no perfect schools because our students, our teachers, and our administrators are sinful; however, through the grace of God, we have a new life in Christ! Despite the calamities that the families in our schools face, we are blessed to help one another in our living together in Christ.
One of our parents, who recently faced surgery to battle cancer, said this about what our school’s life together in Christ means: “Our family is truly grateful to be in such a warm, loving, and nourishing environment…Thank you for showing God’s love for us and our family during this time.” When presented with an opportunity to help a family through the giving of gift cards after they had experienced a devastating house fire, another parent commented, “Thank you for making Lutheran Northwest like a family.” I know that my school is not unique in our living together in Christ, because I know that all of our Lutheran schools are filled with people who are living as new creatures in Christ!
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