School's Out - Looking back

Finished! Done! Good-bye! Farewell!

Yes, school is officially finished for the 2009-2010 School Year for Logos International School students. The school was a hive of activity this morning, as students came in to pick up their report cards and Scholastic Book Club orders. Praise God that those arrived late yesterday afternoon, and I was able to have them ready for the students to collect today. It was tight, but it happened! God is good.

This morning was an early start as I dashed in to school to laminate the student's "memory cards", along with a class photograph for them all. Each year I have the students fill in a page toward the end of the school year, telling some of their favourite things and the things they will remember about this year. I then type them up, and add a personal message for each student. Each year it is slightly different. In the past I've added individual photos. This year I stitched together some group photos and everyone got a class photo. It gives me something special to look back on in the future as well. I managed to get them all done, and tucked inside the student's folders, along with their report cards, and a couple of other treats ready for when the door was opened at 8.30am.

Most of the students arrived early, and they had all collected their goodies by about 10.30am, and by 11.15am the school was mostly deserted. As I sit in my classroom writing this post, and think back over 3 and a half years of teaching at Logos there are many happy memories. I've learned a lot in my first years of teaching, and I know that I've made many mistakes, but praise God there have been lots of positives as well. I know that I still have so much to learn, both as a teacher and as a child of my heavenly Father, and I'm glad that God has given me the opportunity to continue this learning here in Cambodia.

God is good, ALL the time! I thank Him for the many good times I've had a Logos, for the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of many children, and for the things that I have learned during my time here. I thank Him most of all for the freedom I have had for the past 3 1/2 years to share His love in a very open way with the children, and to share with them the good news of His love for them in a meaningful way that they can understand. I can but continue to pray that the seeds that I have planted on His behalf will be nurtured and will bear much fruit in the long term. Thank you Lord for all the children who have been in my classes. I know that I can trust their futures to you. Draw them closer to you each day of their lives.

I also thank God for the colleagues that I have had. We haven't always agreed on everything, but I know that God has been working in me through my relationships with my colleagues, and I thank Him for every one of them. I know that we were all united in wanting the best for our students. God is good, ALL the time.