Can you believe that there are only two weeks of the school year remaining?
If you answered “NO!” then you are not alone. This is a common response amongst most, if not all, the staff at Melton campus.
Amidst our rapidly changing world, we often find that we are so busy with responding to the changes that we lose track of the days, weeks and months of the year. One minute we are celebrating the new year, next minute we are concluding another school year! Our lives are filled with the need to be responsive to change in our world. And in the process of being responsive, we can forget to be present in the world.
As I experience this myself this year – yes, I am like you… I cannot believe we are almost in December! – my philosophical self asks: Where is God in this question? Where is God when I ask, “can I believe that there is only two weeks of the school year remaining?” Where is God in the experience of this rapidly ever-changing world?
The obvious answer is that He is there… here… with us. He is experiencing the change too, whilst also completely knowing of the outcomes of the changes. He is omniscient. He is omnipresent. He is omnipotent.
There is something very calming about these facts. As the world changes rapidly and time seems to escape us humans, we can take solace in knowing that God is with us and knows what is ahead of us. The Spirit dwells in us and guides us in our responses to the changes in the world around us.
I think it is apt, then, that just as we question where the school year has gone, we begin to sing Christmas carols such as O Come, O Come, Emmanuel. This carol, sung right at the time when we cannot believe it is Christmas again, reminds us that God is with us. The Hebrew word ‘Emmanuel’ means ‘God with us.’
Over the last few weeks, the staff and students at Melton have been preparing for their respective End of Year Celebration Nights. It is a fantastic time for the community to gather and give thanks to God for His provisions and the work He has done in our lives, moulding us like clay for His everyday purposes.
Just like these Celebration Nights force us to stop and reflect on the work God has done in the children’s lives at Melton, I want you to be encouraged by the fact that the rapid end of the school year is not something that should cause us distress. Rather, it is a time to celebrate and be reminded that God is with us, and is always with us, because of Christ’s birth on Christmas Day.
I hope the final two weeks of school are filled with joy as you continue to anticipate the conclusion of the school year.