Not too long ago the teachers gathered at the annual OCSTA convention and were inspired by the key note speaker Andy Crouch. He was an engaging speaker with a personable nature and musical gifts that added a unique flavour to his educational address. Each of the aforementioned attributes would have made it an easy lecture to sit through but what made it a dynamic discourse was the combination of the gifts he has with a powerful message for educators. He challenged the members of OCSTA (now Edifide) to establish culture-forming practices in education. I will avoid a detailed account of his analysis but I would like to outline what he presented as the posture we should take in regards to culture. Too often, he argued, we take a passive and reactive approach to culture. We respond and react to what is happening in our culture when it is clear that God calls us to form culture. In the vision statement of this school we state a desire to see God’s children actively reforming His world. This falls in line with Crouch’s call for Christians to spread the good news by contributing to culture to initiate change. Christians should engage in cultivating, contributing, and creating culture to impact the lives of others around us. As stated in our mission statement, we desire to develop the gifts of God’s children to prepare them for Christian service. Each child, as an image-bearer of God, is uniquely gifted for service in God’s kingdom. We have a passion for the students to receive an education to develop their gifts to the best of their ability so that they, in turn, will be equipped to better serve the Lord and advance His Kingdom. Thank you for joining and supporting us in our commitment to the mission of the school. ~ Mr. Bouwers
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