March 2 Home Communicator – Shocked, I stopped and reread the sentence again, “A child spends 1000 of their 6000 waking hours a year in school.” Could that be right? 1/6th of my kids’ waking hours will be spent out from under my influence and under the guidance of their teachers? Of course, this statistic was quick to add that this number did not take into account the additional time after school spent with co-curricular teachers and coaches. Combined, the hours spent being influenced and nurtured away from home is significant – especially as they grow older.
With this reminder fresh in my mind, I left to watch my middle-schooler’s last basketball game here at the Middle School. Before beginning, the coaches gathered both teams, spoke to them about the privilege it was to be able to use the talents and passions God gave them in the game that day, how this game day was an opportunity to bring glory to God not themselves, and spoke into the shared hope of the Christian as they together mourned the loss of a role model for many, TJ VanKoevering, the prior weekend.
As the pregame talk wound down and the coaches huddled the teams closer for an opening prayer, I found myself freshly thankful for the wonderful partnership that we have with teachers at Hudsonville Christian School who are committed to nurturing children in the Truth of God’s Word. Those 1000 hours away from me…that’s a lot of hours, but I’m so glad they spend them where they do.
Rachel Landstra, Mission Advancement
