From the Principal
Faith & Trust in these unusual times
On behalf of every staff member at LCS, every student at LCS and every Board and Association member at LCS, I would like to convey my heartfelt thanks to all parents who have put their trust in the plans we have in place.
I mentioned to our staff in one of our many briefings that it has been challenging to lead in these times, but I also acknowledge that it has arguably been even harder to follow in these times. Leaders at different levels in Australia have been asking things of others that would seem totally unreasonable in normal circumstances. Imagine telling your children that the Prime Minister said you can’t go to your best friend’s birthdays party or visit grandparents on their birthday, not to go out for dinner with friends etc, etc.
And yet this is where we are right now. Thank you and thank you again.
I’m sure you have all been bombarded with information and emails and had to filter these out. I hope you don’t filter out my blurb to you but sort of understand it if you do. Please read on. One of the resources I came across is from an organisation called the Fathering Project.
I commend it to you, especially the 3 ½ minute video message from Dr Bruce Robinson here. Bruce hones in on the emotional wellbeing of children and young adults and how parents can speak into this space with great effect to build relationship, respect and understanding. Please have a look and then share some of his wisdom in your situations and contexts. You won’t be sorry. As a bonus, there are many other good resources, ideas, videos and podcasts on the Fathering Project website, all free!
This week I want to share a story I heard from colleague I worked with at Calvin Christian School. It has a powerful message about faith. I shared this same story with our secondary school at Thursday’s virtual Class Teacher Assembly.
1 Corinthians 16:13 says - Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong.
There is a story is about a Frenchman named Charles Blondin.
Blondin worked as a circus performer and became very adept at walking the tightrope. He would get ‘oohs’ and ‘ahhs’ as he crossed from one side of the circus tent to the other along a high tightrope with no safety net or guide ropes. He was always looking for a new challenge, a new trick to perform while walking the tightrope. He would juggle while walking, walk backwards, walk blindfolded and do other amazing feats. Checking out the photo also shows him practicing effective social distancing and isolation. 😊
For one reason or another, he found his way to the US and was awestruck by the Niagara Falls. Boy oh boy, I would love to see this is real life.
He knew this was his destiny. To walk a tightrope across from the US side to the Canadian side, a distance of almost 350 metres and at as height of almost 50 metres. He gathered up money and did fundraising to get the rope set up to cross the Niagara Falls. He then charged people to watch. They mainly paid to see if he could do it. He made the crossing many times and even at this height and distance, he started to incorporate tricks, as if he’d have to! Just walking across it was enough.
His fame grew and grew and more and more people would come to watch. On one particular occasion he stopped in the middle and fried an omelette and ate it. In 1860, a royal party from England came out to watch him. Blondin walked over from the US side to Canadian side. Everyone in the crowd, said to be 25,000 cheered. Ever the showman, Blondin urged the crowd. "I am Blondin, do you believe I could walk across backwards". The crowd cheered, “Yes we believe you!” “Do you believe I could wheel a wheelbarrow across?” The crowd said “Yes, we believe you!” So Blondin got a wheelbarrow went over. When he got to other side he said, “Do you believe I can do the crossing with the wheelbarrow AND with a large sack of potatoes in the wheelbarrow?” “Yes!” the crowd cried, “We believe you!” So he got a large sack of potatoes, put it in the wheelbarrow and set out again. When he got to other side he said, “Do you believe I could put a person in the wheelbarrow and get to other side safely?” The crowd was in a bit of frenzy by now. “Yes!” they all cried, “We believe you!”
Silence fell over the crowd when he asked the next question. “Who’s going get it the wheelbarrow?” Silence, a few nervous twitches but no one was prepared to come forward and put their life in Blondin’s hands to cross the chasm. After a few minutes, a small boy pressed his way to the front and got into the wheelbarrow and the small boy and Blondin set off across the Niagara Falls. It is reported that for the next two and a half hours, Blondin and the small child carefully and slowly crossed over from one side of the Niagara Falls to the other.
The reason this story stays with me is because the story deals with faith. There were many, many people crying out that they believed in Blondin to do amazing things. But there was only one person willing to get in the wheelbarrow and put their money where their mouth was. The thing you also need to know about the story – the little boy who got in the wheelbarrow, well he was Blondin’s son. Maybe he knew his Dad well enough to know that he could not only believe in his dad, but also put his faith and trust in him to keep him safe through danger.
In these uncertain times, there are lots of questions being asked. Questions about God, questions about trust, questions about faith. Living in these times means putting your trust and faith in someone you may not necessarily be able to see. We can’t see God, but we see evidence of Him when we look. Hopefully you’ll find evidence of Him in your life and the life of those around you.
This takes me back to the verse I mentioned at the start. Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong. The times we are living in require us to have faith. To have courage. To look not just to ourselves, but to seek God’s face and to ask for His strength. And to have enough courage to have faith in Him. Be like the little boy who was prepared to trust his father to get him safely to the other side. God will get us safely to the other side of this COVID-19 crisis too.
I have a block that holds my door open. I used to have it sitting on my shelf as an ornament, but since our Administration redevelopment, for some reason my office door has a mind of its own and slowly swings shut. Every time I have to put the block in my doorway to keep my door open. What a blessing it is every day to see, read and take note from my block which has these words etched into the different faces of the cube.
Stand Firm – 1 Corinthians 15:58
He alone is my rock and my salvation. My fortress where I will not be shaken – Psalm 62:6
I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus – Philippians 3:14
The Lord is my strength and my shield. I trust Him with all my heart – Psalm 28:7
Stand Firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourself fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labour in the Lord is not in vain – 1 Corinthians 15:58
Lord we thank you for this day. We thank you that everything we need for this day you have provided for us. I thank you that even though our school has been geographically apart for some weeks now, that you bind us together, that you love us, and that you will give us all the things we need for this day and more. Thank you that we can now be back at school together and we pray that the life experiences and lessons we are taking from this unique period in the world’s history might prepare and equip us to be better friends to each other, respect each other more, love each other more and look out for each other more. Let faith rise up in us and as we look to you may we find peace. We pray this Jesus name. Amen.
Adrian Bosker