Service/Mission/Leadership Blog

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SHORT TERM

 

Do you remember the days when the approaching summer months filled your heart and head with plans of beach trips, late nights, sleeping in, and complete freedom? Recollections of such summers almost make me wish I were still in high school, especially when the beginning of my “summer break” so far looks a bit more like the list above, and I’ve decided to settle for gazing out the window during summer classes instead of sinking my toes in the sand.

Because there truly is a season for everything (and this summer is my season to work, study and learn to serve), and in an attempt to be mature and maintain a positive attitude…I will share this “cheesy looking forward to the summer” blog with you.  

Short term at Judson (and summer in general) still brings so many opportunities.

 

I can…

1.     Take 9 hours of coursework in a single month (which is not recommended, but I’m trying to graduate on time!)

2.     READ! Especially after I finish May classes, I’ll have more time to read things other than textbooks. I’m currently taking suggestions :)

3.     Learn to quilt! There is a group of ladies who meet once a week here in Marion and quilt together. I think I’m going to start joining them once my summer internship with Sowing Seeds of Hope begins on the first of June. I can’t think of a better way to get to know some new community members.

4.     Breathe, reflect, and be. Throughout June and July I’ll be living in Marion, but not as a Judson student. I’ll be working by helping with kids’ camps and assisting mission groups that come to serve in the area, but I remember having at least a few free evenings last summer. Hopefully I’ll be wise enough to use these free moments to my advantage this summer by spending some time alone with God. Not to sound “super-spiritual,” but I really am looking forward to some quiet afternoons of journaling and just thinking.

 

 

So far the possibilities of the summer are exciting, and I really can’t wait until my internship begins! Please be in prayer for Sowing Seeds of Hope, the incoming mission groups, the people of Perry County, and for me as plans are made and the Kingdom work continues. I hope to share reflections on a season of growth and renewed hope very soon.

 

There is a time for everything,
 and a season for every activity under the heavens…

Ecclesiastes 3: 1

 

Without Wax,

Did she say that our paper was due today? I thought she said it was due next week.

I told you seven o’clock…but the invitation actually said four o’ clock.

The concert is on Tuesday, not Thursday…where did I get Thursday?

Mom, I meant to call you once I made it back to Judson, but I forgot.

Bethany, you need to check your voicemail…how did you break your phone this time…

 

 

Communication is the imparting or interchange of thoughts, opinions, or information by speech, writing, or signs.

 

 

 

Communication is something that we all struggle with, or struggle through, at some time or another. And it is quite an exhausting task!

 

In my Classroom Management course we’ve been discussing the “Teacher’s Voice” and how our communication strategies (good or bad) influence our teaching, our students, and the general atmosphere of the classroom. As a result, I’ve recently been hit with the research-based evidence that my words, tone, and attitude (good or bad) influence people, inside and outside of the classroom.

 

In the textbook for Classroom Management, the author gives an example of her response to a student’s art project. The middle school child had been given the task of creating an illustration to represent a very important house from the novel the class had been reading together. On the day the project was due, the teacher approached the student with criticism, claimed that the house looked nothing like the one from the story, labeled the student as lazy, and insisted that she put some more time and effort into the project.

 

A few days later, the teacher discovered just how much time and effort the student had put into her project. She had searched for days for the perfect house to photograph, developed and enlarged the photo herself, and spent an endless amount of hours adding a detailed background to her own unique depiction of an important element of the novel.

 

 

There was obviously no imparting or interchange of thoughts, opinions, or information by speech, writing, or signs in this scenario, and the author admitted her failure to communicate, wishing that she had simply asked the student to explain her artwork. The teacher and class could have benefited from a new perspective, and the student wouldn’t have been left feeling so incompetent and discouraged.

 

 

 

You meant that, but I heard this.

I wish they would have called me back…I worried about that all weekend.

I don’t want to listen to this right now.

Are you even listening to me?

Don’t talk to me right now; this conversation is getting nowhere.

 

Lately…examples such as this one have really gotten me thinking about more than my future teaching methods. The power of a voice, the power of my voice, has recently become very evident.

I have to wonder how many feelings have been hurt, how many relationships have been damaged, and how many confidences have been destroyed because of a voice, because of a few words.

But then I also have to wonder how many words of encouragement, comfort, and trust have been shared.

 

As an “almost-teacher,” a sister, a friend, an acquaintance, or a total stranger...being the salt and light to a dark world should involve a great deal of this imparting or interchange of thoughts, opinions, or information  with the communities I participate in and the people I cross paths with.

 

I don’t know why I’ve never been hit with the importance of my voice before…maybe I’m just now noticing it because of all the miscommunications happening lately in my own life. Or maybe I’m just immature.

 

But either way…I think they should add a little classroom management to Sunday School :)

 

 

Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.

Colossians 4:6

 

 

Without Wax

A new spring semester at Judson is always exciting to me. You’re given a fresh start, your room is a lot cleaner than it was during finals week or the previous semester, and you can wear the new clothes Santa brought you over Christmas break.

Spring semester brings you four months closer to summer than you were during the fall, and it gives you a chance to hit the gym (free of cost to Judson students) after all the fudge and hot chocolate your grandmother insisted that you eat while home for the holidays.

  Classes resumed on January 6^th, and I moved in on the 5^th with the rest of the Judson girls…but I haven’t had any classes yet. Education classes don’t meet on Fridays, the aerobics class I signed up for to get a P.E. credit decided not to start for another week, and class was canceled today (Monday) due to the threat of winter weather.

  I’m sad to say that it did not snow here…because Judson is just beautiful when she’s covered in a blanket of white, but I’m pretty thankful for the extra day to relax before it’s back to the daily routine. 

 

 

All in all life back at Judson has been pretty chill for me since last Wednesday, but one pretty incredible thing did happen.

 

I went to the business office after lunch on Thursday to validate, which means I had to pay my bill and pick up my new schedule. Now…the ladies in Judson’s business office are some of the sweetest and most pleasant people I’ve ever met. But let’s face the facts: It’s their job to take my money, and I don’t have any. So…visits with them usually aren’t too pleasant. I usually just set up a payment plan, say a prayer, and leave feeling very frustrated and defeated.

But not this semester!

 

 I went in last week, asked to validate, and Judson’s accountant handed me a class schedule and a very generous voucher to be used in the campus bookstore.

When I asked her how much I owe, she told me that it had already been taken care of and reassured me that the book voucher could be used for next semester if I’d already gotten books for this year’s classes.

I was too shocked to ask questions, and she filed my bill away before I had the chance to ask to look at it.

“Did I get another grant? Did the cost of room and board go down? I don’t have to pay for books next semester?”

Later that day, I called my mom to ask her if she’d taken care of my bill, and she hadn’t.

I thought about going back to the office to do a bit of investigation…I really wanted to know how this happened! I felt like Pip in Great Expectations, and I had to write old Miss Havisham a thank-you note!  But an older, wiser friend of mine advised me to just let it be and be thankful. I don’t know if more loan money came in or if some sweet old lady from church or a loving friend or family member called in and paid my bill…but I am thankful. Finding a steady job in Marion is tough…especially when you have to take a full load of classes almost every semester to graduate on time. And since I’d already bought books for this semester, I won’t have to worry at all about the expense of books during my last semester of classes next year before student teaching begins. I am thankful to whoever has helped me in such a great way, and I’m most thankful for God’s perpetual provision.

 

 

It’s good to be off to a worry-free start to yet another semester at Judson!

 

 

Without Wax,

 

Twas the night before finals

And all through the dorm

Lights could be seen twinkling; this was far from the norm

Textbooks were scattered all over the rooms

In hopes that ideas for papers soon would abloom

Judson girls were crouched over laptops, not warm in their beds

But visions of sleep still danced in their heads

My roommate with coffee, and I with my Redbull

Had just been rekindled, and escaped from sleep’s lull

Then out from the hallway, we heard such a noise!

Whose are those deep voices, could it be boys!

Out of the doorway, like Sandra Fowler we flew

If only she were here, we’d know what to do

There couldn’t be boys!

Not at this all-girls’ school

Any man to step foot on the premises must be a fool

With ninja-like skills we snuck down the hall

Pausing along the way, so he wouldn’t see us at all

When, to our sleep-deprived eyes, what should appear?

But the ghost of Christmas to Come, with information about our future careers!

He held file after file showcasing lives to come

Even I’ll admit, he had no system…the files were all random

But he told us his name and asked us to wait

Our study guides were still waiting, but this was our future, and we took the bait

He flipped through his papers, so quickly they came

All he had to do was call each of our names

“Let’s see, here’s Bethany, and Holly Beth too!

Audra, and Kezia…we’ve got the whole crew!”

We were enthralled by his magic

But the precious time we were losing still seemed most tragic

Then as dry leaves before the hurricane fly

The Christmas ghost threw the files up in to the sky

And down to the floor the folders, they flew

With bonus materials about what to study for finals too!

And then, with jingling, we heard sounds of hope

The Christmas ghost gave us advice on how to cope

So we drew in our heads, we turned right around

He opened his mouth, but without any sound

He picked up his papers and put them away

“But what about the advice,” we said, “We need you to stay!”

He filled up our backpacks, for every exam, he gave us a book

He didn’t need to speak; this was all that it took

His eyes, they did sparkle, he looked so merry

But we didn’t share his joy…finals are scary!

He handed over the bags like a wonderful gift

But the package was so heavy that we needed a lift

The nice ghost carried the packages to our rooms

Knowing that with the right materials we’d be studying soon

So we got back to studying, with new motivation

We set up our books and computers, and we each had a station

With a wink of his eye, and a twist of his head

This jolly man assured us we had nothing to dread

We didn’t even speak for the rest of the night, but went straight to our work

The Christmas ghost smiled, then left with a jerk

He waved goodbye, and he wished us good luck

And reminded us to keep studying, even if we get stuck

But I heard him exclaim, as he drifted out of sight,

"Happy Finals to all, and to all a good-night."