Ministry

The Year 12 formal is an amazing event. It’s one that takes countless hours to prepare, with staff, students, hairdressers, make-up artists, drivers, families, and more all involved to create an evening that will last in the memories of students for the rest of their lives. The number of people involved, in some form, would easily be over 1,000 – all for one night.

The event is discussed, planned, changed, argued over, and then executed. For all the effort that goes in ahead of time, the remarkable thing is no one knows how it will turn out until it is actually happening.

I was thinking about how this is mirrored in the lives of the students at Endeavour each and every day. As a school, we put countless hours into the students before they even have their first class. A range of teachers and support staff then work diligently to give students the best chance of success. The students themselves do a lot of work. And then parents, caregivers and families also put in an immense amount of work behind the scenes.

All of this can take place, and while we all do our best, we don’t know how a young person’s life will turn out. For things to turn out well, a lot of things have to go well. Staff, students, families, and others need to operate with trust in each other, appreciating each others gifts, diligently doing their best, and hoping and believing in a positive future.

The Apostle Paul started a church in a place called Corinth. He played his part, and then he had to move on. Someone called Apollos took over. But in the end, neither of them were in control – they had to recognize that success, in the end, belongs to God. Paul wrote: “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow.”

Events like the formal make me grateful – for each person and their role in the life of a student, and to God, who has grown such an amazing group of students.

May we all live with an awareness of our role in the lives of those around us, with gratitude to them and to God, and remain willing to do our best, regardless of the outcome.

Chris Mann

College Pastor