Sunday's Thanksgivings

I am thankful for our church's Sunday School program. Because I am involved as a teacher and a parent, I am very aware of what goes on behind the scenes and in the classrooms. Many years ago, a few Sunday School teachers were convicted that our children need to be memorizing scripture at a very young age, when it is easy to be implanted into the hearts! Every week the children ages 4 and up receive a new verse printed out that is their verse of the week. Our boys are currently going through the 10 Commandments and this year we have been putting their verse cards into a little pocket photo album that we keep on our kitchen table to read every day. Stephen said the other day, with such excitement I might add, "Pretty soon we're going to have our own whole book of commandments right here!" I teach the Grades 3/4 class and our verses are a bit more difficult, but it just warms my heart every Sunday when the kids are so excited to recite the verse that they learned that week. I always make sure that I teach my class the entire meaning of the verse so that while they are learning it throughout the week, they can understand every word and why it is such a powerful verse for their lives. I am so thankful that at such an early age our children are hiding God's Word in their hearts! We don't know what the future holds for them, but if they have this Word in their hearts now, they will be able to draw from a Source that will guide them every step of the way!

I'm thankful for competent leaders in the church. Bear with me, I'm on a Sunday School kick here tonight. This afternoon I had a Sunday School teachers' meeting and our superintendent is such an excellent administrator and I am truly thankful for him! He and his wife make an excellent team as they are on the ball and on top of everything! When you see Brian outside of a Sunday School meeting, you see a meek and quiet man who loves the Lord and his family. When you see Brian at work inside a teachers' meeting, you see a man who takes his responsibilities seriously and is able to be diplomatic and patient with awkward situations and firm, yet full of grace, when direction needs to be clarified. He knows how to run a meeting efficiently, bringing us back on topic when we start to wander. He addresses sensitive issues with such a strong gentleness that I sit in amazement at how he handles these situations. He is also very convicted that our jobs as Sunday School teachers have been given to us by God and we must make sure that our walks with HIM are as close as possible, because that is the way that we will be provided with the wisdom that we need as teachers. I am very thankful for Brian and for the many hours of work and love that he puts into his position of leadership in the Sunday School!

Lastly, since I really am on this Sunday School kick, I must say that I am very thankful for my Sunday School class that I teach. Today our lesson was about Saul's conversion on the road to Damascus. Wow. I just love teaching new words and concepts to children! We started out by talking about the word conversion and how this is simply something that changes from one form to another like a raw egg going through a cooking process, converting into something that is edible. We talked about people we knew who have been converted from a sinful life into a Christ-filled life. They look the same on the outside, but on the inside, they've gone through a heart-changing process that converted them into a new creature. The kids were so into the lesson that when I saw that we only had two minutes left to wrap everything up, I wanted so badly to ignore the time and keep going! My prayer for these third and fourth graders is that God would use my words to teach them lessons that they will remember in the future. I pray that something that I am able to explain will click with them, either now or in years to come, that will help them draw closer to the Lord. I love these kids and I'm so thankful that God has chosen me to be a privileged teacher of this class!