"Whatever you did for one of the least of these..."

It’s been one of those weekends. You know the kind? …the kind when you don’t get to sit down and breathe for just a second. Or the kind when you feel like your to-do this is all but consuming. It’s been one of those weekends.

There’s something else that’s made this weekend difficult, too. It’s the evil that occurred in Connecticut on Friday. I’m pretty sure this is not a great thing, but I usually find myself able to separate “me” from the things I read in the news. Sure, I get sad for people who are sad, or I get frustrated with people who do silly things, but I don’t often get emotional reading news stories. The past 48 hours have been strikingly different. I can’t stop reading stories from Newtown. And I can’t stop crying over them. I know so many of you share my sentiment.

The overwhelming feelings from these news stories stayed with me as I attempted to lesson plan today and prepare to go back to my classroom full of precious children on Monday. Just a few minutes ago, I was reading work e-mails and looking through my curriculum…and I just had to stop. I couldn’t focus because of the overwhelming number of things on my to-do list. I got stressed out about teaching, about the expectations from people all over the school district and about the expectations I hold for myself. In that very moment when I closed my e-mail and put down my books, I took some time to think about all my kiddos. I thought about all the frustrating times I’ve had with them (and there have been many). I thought about all the time I’ve spent planning lessons for them. But most of all, I thought about the reasons I started teaching in the first place. They’re the same reasons so many people across the country choose to wake up in the morning to educate children and choose to stay up late each night grading, planning and preparing.

I know not every teacher in the country believes he or she has been called to this profession to serve the Lord like I do, but I still feel like all teachers are, in fact, servants. An educated child is one who has the capacity to one day make a productive citizen. A loved student is one who feels ready to concur the world.

I know it will be easy for teachers to look at the tragic events of this week and be scared or angry. But I want to share some encouragement – mostly because I had to do this for myself this weekend. A service to children and parents is a service to Jesus, who gave us life and a purpose. No matter how many years I serve in a classroom, I know they’re years that are for a greater purpose than my own. Jesus tells us that whomever we serve, we are in turn, serving Him. I take comfort in these words tonight.

Matthew 25:35-40

35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

Whether or not the media or people around the nation believe it, the teachers who lost their lives protecting precious children or who are now scarred and scared forever, were indeed serving Jesus in turn. God bless every person who chooses to serve in any capacity each and every day.