“Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!" Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples!" “I tell you,” he replied, “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.” Luke 19: 39 & 4
One traditional journal entry that has stood the test of time throughout the various grade levels is “What did you do over your summer vacation?” In addition, it is also a great conversation starter as I walk around the cafeteria, speaking to all of our students during each of their lunch periods. Frequently, students will turn the tables and ask me, “What was the best part of your summer?”, and each time, I find myself sharing this story:
From a personal perspective, I receive great enjoyment and inspiration from the Christian radio station, KLOVE, and last spring, they announced their two-day “Live At Red Rocks” concert in Colorado. I was in awe when I learned that the two-day lineup included so many of my husband’s and my favorite Christian singers and groups. One night during a dinner conversation, I brought up the subject and he nonchalantly said, “We should go”, and in a blink of an eye, before he could change his mind, I had the entire trip planned and booked.
Neither of us had ever attended an event at the Red Rock Amphitheater, and both of us were just blown away by the beauty of this particular venue and how the voices of all the amazing performers would resonate off the rocks! Each performance is still a treasured memory, and I honestly thought that this event was a little preview of what Heaven will sound like when the sold out crowd of 10,000 in attendance would sing along with each performer and worship God with their voices.
However, there was one extremely endearing and tender moment, when a new, up and coming performer named Katie Nicole sang. Her current hit is entitled, “In Jesus’ Name”, and it is almost like singing a prayer over someone. In the audience, there was a five-year-old little boy whom Katie had just met before the show during a “Meet and Greet”. During their conversation, Katie learned that this little boy was going through cancer treatments, and his mom frequently sing the song “In Jesus’ Name” to him during his treatments. Before Katie sang this song at Red Rocks, she shared this story and then asked all 10,000 in attendance to pray over this little boy while she sang this song. It was such a powerful moment. There was not one dry eye in the venue when this song concluded, but it was such a strong testimony to the commands in Scripture to “love one another” and “bare one another’s burdens”.
I am so incredibly excited for this school year’s theme of “Love Is Everything We Need” because it helps keep everything in it’s proper Biblical priority and perspective. We have so many important things to accomplish this school year, but the most important is to love God and love others. When we keep this important Biblical principle in the forefront, everything else will follow in proper priority.
Looking forward to a wonderful school year filled with many opportunities to share His love with others.
In Jesus’ Name,
Mrs. Palka