Battlefield

Yesterday was a big day in Cypress Student Ministries. It was the last Sunday of summer. The last Sunday before school starts. The last Sunday our students didn't have to worry about rushing home to finish up all the homework they forgot to do the entire weekend.

It was also a very bittersweet Sunday for a couple of our students that will be leaving for college this week.

So, naturally we focused in on this very big time of change during our programming yesterday. Here's what I learned...

An surprisingly large number of our students confessed that school feels more like a "battlefield" than a positive environment. The majority of students I surveyed said they're not really excited about school to start so much as they are bracing for the unwelcome blow that would surely come. If not this week, shortly thereafter.

I was shocked. I know that there is a small percentage of students that find themselves on the bottom of the social pyramid who are subjected to bullying and unfair treatment in school but most of our kids?

The athletic kids?

The popular kids?

The smart kids?

The outgoing kids?

Student after student I spoke with said, "yes". And the minefield looks different to each of them. For some it is bullying but for others it might be gossip, judgment, pressure to perform, pettiness, staring, hating what you see in the mirror, competition, or speech class or 101 other things.

My heart broke for these students. Your students. My students.

So the challenge was this: instead of walking down the halls or campuses of your schools paralysed by the mines that lay in your path, look up. Look around you. Look up out of your pain and look into the eyes of another's. And ask yourself this question: is it possible to form an alliance with the students God has placed in my path so that we can fight this battle together, on the same side? Is it possible that instead of seeing school as a battlefield God is asking me to see it as an opportunity to allow the light of his unconditional love to shine through me to make this school a brighter place?

And remember the promises in Matthew 5 for those of you that take God up on this challenge...

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.