“Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations. Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever You had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting You are God… Satisfy us in the morning with Your steadfast love, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.” Psalm 90:1-2; 14
God’s love is steadfast; His love is faithful, from everlasting to everlasting. In His great love, God holds on to us; He will never let go.
The co-worker leading us in devotions this morning shared that wonderful comfort above…but my mind unfortunately wandered to 'that' phone call. It’s the end of the first quarter, and I received one of those phone calls yesterday. The mom wants to talk to me about transferring her son from a neighboring school into our Kindergarten.
‘Holding on and not letting go’ has triggered thoughts from yesterday.
An end of the first quarter ‘I want a transfer’ phone call is different than an end of the third quarter ‘I want a transfer’ phone call… but you know that already. At the end of the third quarter, parents are often trying to avoid retention for their child who has missed 47 days of school and hasn’t made up any work. But an end of the first quarter transfer is usually because someone is displeased with a teacher or the other children in the class.
The mom told me that her son is being bullied, and I’m guessing that you are not surprised. So I called Kathy, the neighboring public school principal…
“Hi, Chuck. Well, a little girl in his class asked him if he had any brothers or sister…and if they were black or white. The little girl is only 5 years old, and she didn’t understand that what she asked might be hurtful. This little boy’s father is black, and his mother is white; the child has dark skin, and so the question makes some sense. I spoke with both students and their parents; we handled everything appropriately, but Chuck, I just don’t... The mom won’t let go of what the little girl said. People seem to hold on to things so much more these days… I’m sure the student will do well at your school. You know I have a wonderful group of Christian teachers here at Washington Elementary, but we can’t approach things exactly the same way you can. Still…”
Yes, I know “still” – that means if we take the little boy, his mother comes along as part of the package. Kathy is correct about how we can handle things, but…still. I’m meeting with the parents this afternoon to talk about my school, children, our Kindergarten class, and expectations. They will be a bit surprised that I don’t jump at accepting this transfer, that I encourage them to consider visiting again with Kathy. With the Spirit’s help, I’ll talk about us as ‘sinner and saint,’ including our children.
Before that, however, I’ll call Kathy to remind her that God holds on to His children and that His love will never let us go. I’ll share the comfort from this morning’s devotions. Kathy is a good neighbor and welcome partner in our work with children and families.