From the Head of Secondary's Desk

Dear Parents/Guardians

As we come to the end of another lockdown and things finally start to open up, there’s a feeling like a new dawn, the sun is starting to rise. And yes, while we never know for sure what a new day will bring, there is a sense of hope rising.

In Lamentations, a book of the Bible that contemplates the realities of the struggles of life, we read (from the NLT version) in 3:20-24: I will never forget this awful time, as I grieve over my loss. Yet I still dare to hope when I remember this: The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning. I say to myself, “The Lord is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!”.

As I greeted students returning to school and observed them able to play together, I felt I saw a new countenance upon student faces that had been missing in the video screens from recent months. Such a delight! We are not in denial that we’ve been through a tough time from which some students may be carrying wounds, yet we know the faithful love of the Lord never fails and that he uses his church (including this school community) to show his care and compassion, to encourage and spur on. Isaiah 58:8 - Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear…

As restrictions lift we look forward to assemblies, sports days, music rehearsals, excursions, etc. - all things that we used to take for granted. So please keep an eye on the school events calendar which has looked quite sparse recently.

Before closing, l take this opportunity to ask you to continue to pray for:

• The health of our school community in this current season
• Year 12 students undergoing VCE exams
• Students who may find the transition from online to on-site difficult.

Thank you again for allowing us to partner with you in seeing your children, Grow in Christ, Strive for Excellence, and Influence the world.

Darren John

Head of Secondary