Frantic February

There are a lot of things happening in the short month of February. There have been some days of inclement weather, days of professional growth for the staff and a day to celebrate family. During the recent professional development day on February 15^th, the staff spent the day learning about assessment and evaluation. The guest speaker, Damian Cooper, led three sessions on this area and discussed with us 5 different topics. At the beginning of the day Diane Stronks, from Edifide, led us in devotions and challenged us to see assessment as a gift we give our students. The staff has not yet had the opportunity to debrief about the day and what we can collectively incorporate into our practice at Dundas Calvin Christian School. I look forward to the discussions that will lead us down the path of learning once more. Professional development is important for a staff to continue on their life long journey of learning. We need to be challenged and stretched to ensure we are continuing to provide a quality, Christ centered education. I not only look forward to the discussions that will arise from the recent workshops but also the continued learning and refining of the staff through ongoing professional development. Blessings ~ Mr. Bouwers

Can't buy me love.... February 11, 2013

As we approach Valentine’s Day we are often forced to think of love.  There is a commoditized or commercialized feel to this day where love seems to be repackaged and sold to us.  Even though this may be the way it is, we are still able to remove ourselves from this hustle and bustle and digger a little deeper into love.  The theme verses this year, Colossians 3:12-14, urges us to clothe ourselves with the characteristics of Christ.  As we are being transformed by the Spirit we show visible signs of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.  Love is to bind all of these virtues to create a unity.  This is much more than a commodity to be purchased in February.  Love, in this instance, is the adhesive of the Christian community.  This bond or adhesive creates a perfect one piece garment that fits all of these segments together into a cohesive whole.  Radical love is manifested in these virtues and, conversely, each of these virtues is nothing if it is not bound in love.  1 Corinthians 13 paints a vivid word picture of the importance and power of this supernatural love.  We pray that our students will exhibit this love in the development of their gifts.  We long for our graduates to live out this love in Christian service so that others may be transformed by the love of Christ through them.  What’s love got to do with it?  Absolutely everything!  May you grow in and share God’s love with others this week and throughout the year.    ~Mr. Bouwers

Molds and Cocoons February 4th, 2013

Winter Enrichments are a wonderful opportunity for students to try different things or hone various emergent skills. As I have walked around observing the different sessions I noted how wonderful it is to see the students working alongside teachers, parents, and community volunteers. It helps us fulfill our mission to develop the gifts that God has placed in each and every one of our students. In the development of these gifts we do hope our students will be equipped for a life of leadership, contribution and service in God’s kingdom.

I believe this fit so well with a recent sermon illustration. The pastor was outlining what is meant for our lives to be living sacrifices to the Lord. This continual attitude of sacrifice and gratitude is a worshipful response to God. It urges us in Romans 12 not to conform any longer to the patterns of this world but to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. In the baking session the prepared mixes are poured into the forms or molds for the delicious baking. This is a prime example of conforming. It is appropriate and necessary for the cake or muffin mix to conform to the pan or mold. 

On the other hand as our students develop into imitators of Christ we are not called to conform but to be transformed. This transformation comes from the heart; it comes from the inside out. This type of transformation can more aptly be illustrated by a metamorphosis. The cocoon of the butterfly conceals the transformation within. The transformation occurs from the inside. We pray for the Spirit to continually knock on the doors of our students’ hearts as we also instruct them in ways and attitudes that reflect this type of transformation. As their gifts are unwrapped we long for them to be transformed by the Spirit to display the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22-25) and the clothes of Christ (Col. 3:12-14).

Praying for you...

Praying for you...

The end of the month is in sight and we can recount God’s blessings this past month. We are thankful at the school for the families that have committed to our school. Each Monday the staff meets for devotions to start the week together devoting the day and week to God. During our prayer time we pray for three specific families and their children. We have found this to be a blessing to our staff and we wanted you to feel blessed as well knowing that you are upheld in our prayers. I recently heard a sermon on prayer as one of the spiritual disciplines that helps prepare us for living lives as imitators of Jesus Christ. We will continue to pray for this school, the families that support it and the work of the Spirit to stir us to be imitators and image bearers. We also ask that you keep the staff, the Board and the various committees in your prayers as we seek to fulfil our mission in this corner of God’s kingdom. ~ Mr. Bouwers

Open House

I was reading through a colleagues’ writings on Christian education and came across some intriguing items.  As you see in the Connects there is an Open House scheduled for January 30^th. Please share with family and friends the blessing that Christian education is to you and our community and invite them for a personalized walk-through. If they’re not available to come that day, encourage them to call the school and set up an appointment for another time.  

If you’re trying to convince your church friends that Christian education is a blessing, check out

 www.whychristianschools.ca

for some helpful words to say.  You could even share this website with your friends. Under the tabs: purpose of education, role of parents, influence of teachers, salt and light, and counting the cost, the site offers parents things to consider when choosing a school for their children.

At DCCS we also have small booklets in the front office called, For the Love of the Child which outlines a case for Christian education. A strong support to that is an online book called Families Living in the Fabric of Faithfulness.  In the very first chapter it discusses world and life view and how that is worked out in our lives.  As part of our mission we want to prepare our students for a life of Christian service and that has a lot to do with showing what we believe in the way that live.  You can read more at 

www.whitworth.edu/fabricoffaithfulness. 

Let us share the joy of Christian education with others. ~Mr. Bouwers

Meek and Gentle January 14, 2013

Throughout the school year we have been looking at the different characteristics we are called to put on in Colossians 3:12-14 and we have called them the Clothes of Christ.  So far we have taken a look at compassion, kindness, and humility, and it is time to turn our attention towards putting on gentleness or meekness.  Sometime ago I went to a Promise Keeper’s rally where I was challenged by the speaker to reflect on the image of being meek and gentle.  The speaker urged us to not see meekness as weakness.  Using gentleness towards others should not be seen as wimpy.  He went on to say that the word in the original Greek was used to describe a trained war horse.  If you’ve seen the movie War Horse you might agree that it is not a picture of weakness that is portrayed.  The trained war horse has to bend its will to that of the rider during the most frantic and dangerous times.  I believe that in this passage we are called to rein in our natural desire to rebel, fight to get our own way and push ourselves forward, and submit ourselves to obedience to God’s will for our lives.   This may take great courage and strength to bend in this way.  In the words of that speaker, meekness should be viewed as strength under control.  So as we go about living our lives in community it is a great reminder that we are called to suppress our knee-jerk reactions and our tendency to lash out and allow God to use our gifts for His glory.  Jesus Christ is our best example of this as we put on the clothes of Christ and seek to be imitators of God’s one and only Son.  May the Holy Spirit work powerfully in the hearts of our staff, students, and parents as we respond to this call.  ~Mr. Bouwers   

I resolve to...

I resolve to….

As we look at the calendar year ahead it is some individual`s common practice to make resolutions. I thought it might be interesting if we made a communal resolution to inform ourselves and others about the long-term benefits of Christian education. Cardus has recently put out a study that compares the religious graduates from government funded and non-government funded religious schools in Canada. Some of the key highlights that we should be aware of are:

Stronger families

· More engaged in community groups

· More generous

· More focused on neighbourhood

· Express their identity through their work

· Produce civically engaged graduates

I think these results, seen through the filter of the mission and vision of the school, provide an excellent basis to have conversations with our friends and neighbours about the benefits of Christian education. If you would like to view the whole report and study you can visit their website for more information, https://www.cardus.ca/store/3564 .

~Mr. Bouwers

The Humblest of Kings December 17, 2012

The King of kings is our example of humility, as odd as that may seem.  How does the  portrait and imagery of a King serve as the ultimate example?  How do we cover ourselves in humility when we are united with Christ?

Jesus humbled himself.  The King of kings, His very nature God, became man.  Philippians 2 paints a stunning picture of the extent that Christ humbled himself.  It would be one thing for God to come to this earth and rule as an earthly king but that is not how he revealed himself.  He made himself nothing.  He came and was not born in a palace but in the squalor of a stable.  He came and led a life as a teacher and a servant, not a life of privilege.  If that was not humbling enough he became obedient to death itself.  The next words in Philippians are familiar but should not be read too quickly, “even death on a cross!”   We may miss the full weight and impact of that statement.  He did not live a life as a servant and die just any death; he did not die in his sleep at an old age.  He humbled himself to die the death of the cursed, to hang on a tree. 

That modeled humility is the perfect antidote to the self-serving attitude that can creep into our lives.  It provides a stark contrast from the self-love that plagues humanity.  It is a message we all need to hear; it is a message our students need to hear.  In a society where people clamour for their “just” rights and entitlement Christ’s example becomes counter to that culture.  He became nothing and forfeited much.  We also need to surrender our entitlement and our rights to follow the example of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. 

The clothes of Christ, those are the clothes that I want my children to be wearing.  We pray that our students, throughout the year, will practice clothing themselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience all bound in love, the perfect adhesive for the community of Christ.

Presidential Wood Chopping Dec. 10th, 2012

As we enter the Christmas season and the month of December I would like to take the opportunity to view the next piece of clothing, humility.  In Philippians 2 we are instructed to live with a Spirit of humility.  It states, “in humility consider others better than yourselves.”  I am reminded of the story I read of a college professor appointed to his post in the 19th century.  This president, Booker T. Washington was a renowned educator and  exemplified this humility. Not long after his initial appointment as president of a college he was taking a walk in the well to do part of town.  There he was stopped by a wealthy woman who had some yard work that needed tending.  Not knowing the famous individual by sight, she asked him if he would like to earn some extra money chopping wood.  Because he had no pressing business at the moment, he agreed and smiled as he rolled up his sleeves.  He then went about the business of completing the humble chore.  After the chopping was done he spent the extra time to carry the logs into the house and stacked them neatly by the fireplace. A little girl recognized him and later revealed his identity to the lady. The next day the women went to see him in his office.  She was apologetic and embarrassed by the whole incident.   He was gracious enough to reassure her that he enjoyed a little manual labour and it was delight to help her in her time of need.  A truly humble man is hard to find, yet God delights to honour such selfless people. We deal with each other in this community in various relationships and I pray we will cover ourselves with humility with an attitude of loving service as we interact.   ~Mr. Bouwers

What’s in a Name Change? Dec. 3, 2012

As we step forward as a school and embrace a new name on the outside of this building I think it would be good to explore the topic of name changing altogether.  In the Bible there were numerous times when someone was “renamed.”  Often the new name was used to help with the remaking or the identity of the individual.  Abram was renamed Abraham, Jacob was renamed Israel, and the list could go on.  The names did not change who they were as God’s children but it may have helped clarify their calling.  It did not change who they were before that point it just enabled them to move forward with renewed mission under a new banner. 

We will often hear of a name change after a wedding ceremony.  When two become one in marriage in our North American tradition the one partner will often change her name.  This does not change who she is as a person.  She remains who she is with all her gifts, talents, idiosyncrasies, and imperfections intact.  She does receive an expanded identity as she takes on a new name.  She becomes part of a larger family.   The family is expanded to include both the husband and the wife’s family.   As we marry the two names it is important to know that we will not cease to carry our identity but we will look to expand our family.  We will remain faithful to the mission and vision of this school.  

As we celebrate the heritage of Dundas Calvin Christian School we can also look to the new banner that will help clarify our calling and mission.  We live and move and breath in God’s providence and we claim that fact as a Christian school.  When we provide a quality, Christ-centered education we do so in the knowledge that the Lord is Lord of all.  When we develop the gifts of God’s children we do so clinging to His divine care and direction.  When we prepare them for a life of leadership and contribution in His Kingdom we do so knowing that we rely wholly on his provision for us.   This is what defines us as Providence Christian School.