"The same Power that rose Jesus from the grave, the same Power that commands the dead to wake, lives in us, lives in us..The same Power that moves mountains when He speaks, the same Power that can calm the raging sea, lives in us, lives in us, He lives in us, lives in us.. Greater is He that is living in me..He has conquered our enemy." I always find it awe inspiring when God finds multiple ways to remind me that HE is greater than the things of this world. I heard this song recently and it has such a strong connection to our theme this year. Every day we are faced with struggles, worries, temptations, things that turn our attention away from Him...
I Peter 5:8-11 reminds us " Keep a cool head. Stay alert. The Devil is poised to pounce, and would like nothing better than to catch you napping. Keep your guard up. You’re not the only ones plunged into these hard times. It’s the same with Christians all over the world. So keep a firm grip on the faith. The suffering won’t last forever. It won’t be long before this generous God who has great plans for us in Christ—eternal and glorious plans they are!—will have you put together and on your feet for good.
He gets the last word; yes, he does. (MSG)
There is such VICTORY in knowing that GOD has defeated the enemy and that He lives in us. God's POWER is GREATER!! When He promises that we will not be overtaken, I find such hope and peace in those words. Isn't it amazing that he loves us so much that he bears our burdens for us, that he fights our battles and IS victorious. Thank you, Jesus!
"My dear children, you belong to God and have defeated them; because God’s Spirit, who is in you, is greater than the devil, who is in the world." Song: Greater by Mercy Me
What is productive struggle in the classroom and how do teachers know when they have met the optimum learning threshold? This is an important question because appropriate levels of productive struggle increase academic rigor. Providing students with an opportunity to be challenged with concepts and skills just above their current ability level increases deeper learning and critical thinking.
Students who are learning are engaged in activities that require a level of intellectual discipline that takes them to a place right at the brink of what they know and what they do not know. Productive struggle allows students an opportunity to learn to understand in more meaningful, relevant ways. Appropriate levels of frustration actually increase student efficacy and encourage students to feel success. This kind of struggle should ultimately yield positive learning results.
Highly effective teachers use both formative (informal) and summative (formal) assessment techniques to inform their instruction and make appropriate changes to daily lessons, instructional approaches, learning strategies, and content to ensure student learning is taking place for EVERY student. This is called differentiated instruction and is necessary in order for productive struggle to be present in the classroom.
Differentiated learning is a term we are going to focus on at Bethlehem this year as we move towards individualizing learning and targeting student's specific strengths and areas for improvement in all content areas. In essence, teachers will know right where your student is at and they will adjust instruction accordingly to both challenge and remediate as needed.
Differentiation requires specific management techniques and also requires support from home to ensure that the goals being set by both teacher and student are being focused on in the classroom and reviewed at home. You may also notice that classroom activities and structures may look different as a result. It's OK!! As teachers and students become more comfortable with differentiated instruction, the results will be powerful. Research shows that differentiated learning approaches have a positive impact on overall student achievement SUCCESS!! This is exciting!!
As I sit here this morning looking out at the lake in my quiet time with the Lord, I am reminded of a song that I heard this week for the first time from one of my favorite Christian artists. The song is called FIRST by Lauren Daigle.
During my devotion time, I have spent time listening and reflecting and was once again met with a resounding message. God wants us to seek Him FIRST before ANYTHING else. I know that there are times when I do or say something before being prayerful and seeking His will because I am impatient. Then I have to humble myself before Him (and others in my life) and ask for forgiveness.
Yes, I am a broken sinner.
What I do know though is that I WANT to be intentional with seeking Him FIRST. So, today my prayer will be to ask for strength and perseverance as I walk in Him so that I strive to seek him FIRST...always...above all else. I have evidence that when I seek Him FIRST, everything else falls into place. My relationship with my girls, my family, and my friends are stronger and healthier because He is the foundation.
Do you understand what I mean, dear friends?
Matthew 6:33 says “If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers—most of which are never even seen—don’t you think he’ll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I’m trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God’s giving. People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don’t worry about missing out. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met. (MSG)
I know that He promises these things, now all I need to do is be intentional about always seeking him FIRST!!
Dear Jesus,
Before I bring my need, I will bring my heart. Before I lift my cares, I will lift my arms, I wanna know You, I wanna find You, in every season in every moment, before I speak Your word, I will bring my heart and seek you, FIRST! I love you Lord, thank you for your grace and mercy. Amen
As you know, I love to listen to music and the Holy Spirit ministers to me through song in such powerful ways. It is often that I am driving down the road and I hear a song on the radio that makes me think of all of you. The other day my girls were singing their hearts out to this tune driving back from a late evening ice cream run, and I knew that this would be the focus of my next devotion. You see sometimes it is a line or just one word that speaks to me, and I am inspired to share with you about the amazing love of our Lord Jesus Christ.
In this song, the worship leader sings about the most promising place I have ever known-The Cross. He says, "At the cross, I surrender my life, I'm in awe of you. Where your love ran red and my sins washed white. I owe it all to you. Here my hope is found, here on Holy Ground, here I bow down."
The lines are so meaningful in my life today. The one word that particularly stood out to me was the word "Surrender." Have you ever had a time in your life when you just wanted to surrender it all to God and give Him complete control of a situation or situations? Or even more so, have you had a time in your life when you SHOULD have surrendered it all to Him, but you were not able to hand it over? I find myself in that struggle often and then I am reminded that God's word calls us to humble ourselves before the Lord and that when we do He rejoices! James 4:10 says "Humble yourselves before the Lord and He will exalt you." Sometimes we are so caught up in what man wants or thinks or with earthly ideals that we are scared to surrender it all. I know that I fear failure and sometimes surrendering can feel as if I have failed myself or those around me.
But God is faithful in reminding me that surrendering to Him is a sign of strength and reflects the faith I have in Him and in His promises. It can be so hard, but I thank Him daily for his mercy and continued presence in my life. I know that because of the cross where His blood ran red, I am loved, cherished, and forgiven. Those promises alone help me to surrender when it is sometimes hard.
I Peter 5: 6-10 reminds us "Be humble in the presence of God’s mighty power, and he will honor you when the time comes. 7 God cares for you, so turn all your worries over to him.
8 Be on your guard and stay awake. Your enemy, the devil, is like a roaring lion, sneaking around to find someone to attack. 9 But you must resist the devil and stay strong in your faith. You know that all over the world the Lord’s followers are suffering just as you are. 10 But God shows undeserved kindness to everyone. That’s why he appointed Christ Jesus to choose you to share in his eternal glory. You will suffer for a while, but God will make you complete, steady, strong, and firm.
Somedays, I know that lion roars LOUDLY. It's then that I stop, quiet myself, and surrender.
Because His mercy reigns. Thank you Jesus! I love you Lord!
I have to apologize for the lack in posting on my part over the last several months. I promise to be more diligent in updating this page!! :) I want you to see and hear what God is doing in the lives of our Bethlehem family.
The past few weeks have been very busy as I closed out my first year here at Bethlehem. I have to say what a blessing it was to walk through life with each of you as your principal, friend, and sister in Christ.
I witnessed the amazing, outstretched arms of Jesus in each of you as I learned the ins and outs of our school, experienced struggles, and worked towards change as we seek to move from good to great.
For a transitional year, I would have to say it was successful, and looking forward I am confident that God will lead us in the right direction as he promises "For I know the plans I have for you" declares the Lord. "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11. I don't know about you, but I find great comfort and peace in those words.
As we move into the summer months, I wanted to share my new favorite song with you. The words are powerful and so true. "I found my life when I laid it down" and "I touched the sky when my knees hit the ground" reminds me that I must surrender my own ideas, thoughts, and wishes and pray like I have never prayed before. God is always in control and He is BIGGER than anything life presents us with. I hope and pray that you have a restful and joyous summer and that you continue to seek out Jesus in all you do, He desires a real relationship with YOU!
