Principal

Servant Heart

Dear Friends,

God has made us all with a desire to be purposeful and to make a difference in some way in our lives.

At the Last Supper, the disciples had an argument as to who was considered the greatest. Jesus replied that if they wanted to be great they needed to be like a servant (Luke 22: 24 – 27). Jesus didn’t just tell his disciples what to do, he modelled servant-hood to his disciples.

Serving is not a ‘checklist’ or a ‘to-do’ list whereby we earn points from God or from others. We serve, because God first served us. We serve, in response to our relationship with God. It is an outpouring of our love for our Saviour and for our neighbour. Just imagine if absolutely everyone (staff, students, parents) made up their mind to just serve each other. How dynamic our community would be!

As we present Jesus Christ to each other and to the world through our love and acts of service, we become salt and light to a struggling world. Our ‘love-in-action’ portrays a faith which attracts people to Christ and leads them to the heart of what it is to be a Christian, to love God and to love others.

Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”

Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” This is the first and greatest commandment.  And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”    Matthew 22: 34-40

DARE TO SERVE

St Andrews Christian College is hosting a special Service Learning Expo called DARE TO SERVE. This Expo is particularly aimed at students and staff to help us all understand the importance of service learning in our individual lives, but also for our school communities.

As we are inviting schools from around the state to participate in the Expo, leading Christian educators from interstate and overseas are also registering interest in this exciting event.

I invite all parents and friends of St Andrews Christian College and your church communities to attend DARE TO SERVE on Tuesday 17th November at St Andrews Christian College.

All registrations ($30 per person/includes lunch) are to be done online at www.daretoserve.net.au

Dare to Serve is being sponsored by New Hope International and supported by CSA (Christian Schools Australia) and CEN (Christian Education National). The Expo will feature excellent keynote speakers from overseas (Dr Samson Makhado and Mr Brian Cox) and workshop leaders for elective seminars. Several schools from around the state will also be chosen to feature in an exciting segment called “Stories Worth Telling” – which will highlight outstanding ways schools are serving God and their communities.

SERVICE CARD

We are introducing a SERVICE CARD to our students at St Andrews next week. It will not be a compulsory activity, but voluntary.

The idea is that students do at least one service activity for someone who needs help and to record it on the SERVICE CARD.

The purpose of doing an act of service is to help students be intentional about serving and to think of someone else’s needs rather than their own. Our focus is not to ‘look good’ but to serve God and to learn to do something for others without expecting a reward for our acts of kindness. Also, in stepping out and doing something that is perhaps difficult for us or uncomfortable, we tend to lean more on God and His strength to do the task.

This service program also presents a great opportunity for families to talk about service and how we want to grow to do our service "in secret", just before the Lord. (Matthew 6:3-4)

Parents, please monitor your child in an age appropriate service that your child may partake in. It may be for a family member, acquaintance or ‘known’ neighbour. If your child participates in this program, the Service Card is due back to your child’s home room teacher by Tuesday 13th October, 2015.

Please also contact me if you have any concerns or have any good news stories that come from your child’s ‘service’.

In His Service,

Catriona