Welcome to my classroom! :) Welcome to broken pencils and lost erasers and torn pages and kids talking instead of working, or sitting in time out as a result. Welcome to the bell inducing a chorus of schoolbooks slamming shut and a stampede of kids running to get their snack or use the bathroom or play. But welcome also to a place of beauty, of learning (not just the kids!), of joy. Welcome to Margarita's sparkling smile that makes her look like a princess, and Juanito's uncontainable excitement about his progress in learning his times tables, and Ricardo's eager, wide-open expression as he works through a problem... and then those moments when you just have to laugh, because they really do come up with some pretty funny things to say sometimes. :)
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| Michelle's class |
Pray that Jesus opens the minds and hearts of these precious kids to His salvation!
Last Wednesday I got to spend some time with a couple of the teenage deaf girls. It was such a treat to be able to catch up with them and connect again after the summer (I don't see them all that often, since they're usually in and out of class so fast and I am not their teacher), and they expressed to me that they would like to get together more often to be able to learn more about the Bible, since it is really hard for them to read. Wow. I suggested that we could go through a passage separately and then discuss it together, and Marisol said she'd also like to learn about living as a Christian woman, how to guard your purity, etc. I asked Flor what she would like to learn, and she said she wants to learn about what Jesus did when He died for us.
Does it get any better than that?? :)
It's complicated, with lots of difficult situations among the deaf kids, etc., but there is a hunger there and an opportunity for discipleship. I certainly do not feel qualified to really guide them, and of course I am not the only one, but I am thankful for this chance to let Jesus work. Please pray with me for these young people, that the Holy Spirit will keep working in their lives and filling them with the knowledge of Christ!!!
And last but not least, here's a picture of the family I live with down here, taken last weekend when the ones who don't live at home were back visiting. I can't thank God enough for the 'home away from home' He has given me in this precious family!
