Dear First Pres,
And just like that summer vacation is coming to a close. Yes, for most of the families in our congregation, school is starting within the next two weeks. Of course, it’s not just students returning. It’s teachers, administrators, staff, and many volunteers who make schools function. These past two school years have been nothing short of dramatic and difficult. And, as COVID cases spike again, I can only imagine the angst it is causing all those connected with our local school districts.
That’s why we want to bring some encouragement to the three public schools closest to our church campus: School of Unlimited Learning High School (SOUL), Lowell Elementary School, and Kepler Neighborhood School.
So, this Sunday, as part of our annual Love Our Schools Sunday, we’re inviting everyone to join the effort by writing a card of encouragement and blessing to a school employee. We’ll provide all the materials you need on Sunday. But if you want to take a bit more time on your note(s) than Sunday morning allows, you are welcome to bring something back in the next few weeks.
We also want to collect gift cards (like we did for hospital workers earlier in the year). Knowing we don’t need quite as many gift cards as we did for the hospital workers, we want to encourage you to consider a more valuable gift card ($25-50). For example, instead of ten $5 cards from the coffee shop, consider a $50 card from one of the big box, educational stores, or online stores. (Of course, any amount will be welcomed.) We’ll be collecting gift cards and notes until August 29 with the goal to deliver them to our neighboring schools by September 1.
Our Vision is “In Fresno as it is in Heaven.” What does that mean for our local schools? Well, ultimately it means that our schools would more and more be places where people, young and old, are surrendering their lives to the Lordship of Jesus and living for His sake. But it also means that our schools would be life-giving for the children of our community. It means that the folks who work in our schools would feel supported and encouraged for the incredibly important work that they do. It means that every school, in every part of our community, would have the resources (human, financial, etc.) it needs to be effective. You get the picture, right? It means that our schools would be places where the name of God is hallowed, where the will of God is accomplished, and His Kingdom is made manifest.
That’s why we sacrifice a bit of our energy and money to bless the people who work at these schools right around our church campus. We want them to know God’s incredible love through our actions. So, I encourage you to come ready on Sunday to love our schools in the name of Jesus.
Blessings,
Pastor Jeremy
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