Welcome to Tuesday!!! It's that time of year again! Attention class, today turn on your mobile devices and que up the site tuesdaysmusicalnotes.blogspot.
Welcome to Tuesday, back to school, and Tuesday's Musical Notes salute to those who make pouring into and mentoring students, regardless of age, one of the passions of their lives. Our incredible thanks go to the teachers and faculty of schools for being the caretakers of our students education and development during their formative years. While the importance of teachers is paramount, it does not replace the God given responsibilities that parents have for the raising of their children. Click here for just a few reminders of the Biblical mandate parents have for THEIR students: Bible Verses About Parents Responsibilities - Official King James Bible online
For many students this is the time of the year they have been looking forward to as they get to be together with friends on a much more consistent basis than what summer allows. For others, not so much...yup we can hear the eye rolling through the internet. The beginning of the school year is one that is welcomed with sleepy eyes, increased rush hour traffic, and believe it or not an exhilaration that can only come from what a new year at school holds for students, teachers, administration and support staff alike. No school year is ever identical. Lifelong relationships can be formed while spending 6-8 hours a day with the same bunch of folks...at least relationships that you may explore 20 years from now in whatever incarnation Facebook may have taken.
Each year a new generation of students begins learning as 5 and 6 year olds start the process of cutting the apron strings and forming new relationships with adults other than their parents and with friends who aren't related to them. It signifies the beginning of a lifelong process of learning. It also involves much more than reading, writing and arithmetic being the branches of the learning tree, but given the right guidance it can all be as easy as ABC...
They
were THE musical act at the beginning of a new decade. They were the
first band to see their first four singles go straight to #1. They had
an additional three singles go into the top ten making for seven top ten
singles in just two years. "ABC" would knock off The Beatles "Let It
Be" from the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100. For many, the music of
the Jackson 5 would reach across cultural boundaries and define what
popular music would like look going into the future. They would release
four albums in one year, making Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon, and of
course Michael household names in the early 70's. Their faces would
adorn lunch boxes and magazine covers and their music would have folks
dancing all over the world. After a tumultuous break up with Motown,
the Jacksons (Jermaine would remain at Motown as he had married Berry
Gordy's daughter, Hazel) would see their album sales slowly shrink which
would give rise to Michael coming into his own as a solo act with his
debut album, Off The Wall. By 1982, and with the release of Michael's second solo project, the best selling album of all time, Thriller,
the Jacksons as a band were relegated to popular music icons and a
dynasty of a bygone era. Subsequent reunion tours and albums failed to
recapture the style and essence of the band in their youth. They were
inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997 and continue to see
their music and style influence generations.
From
the moment we are conceived, learning begins. By the time we are born,
our education concludes that eating and rest are important things, and
we have learned some subtle communication skills. As we get older our
brains develop and begin storing information of all kinds. By the time
we hit school age, we have a vast amount of information swirling through
our minds. The framework of a formal education provides some
arrangement and structure to what we have already learned and a format
for "filing" the data stream that we will encounter every day. Every
day something new is processed, acted upon or set aside for the next
opportunity for use. What we learn makes up who we are. Our search for
identity causes unsettled patches of our lives as EVERY person
possesses an uneasiness that wonders if "this is all there is?".
Many
philosophers, psychologists, and psychiatrists will relate that this
search for the meaning of our existence is something that can only be
attained by our sense of self worth. While there is a modicum of truth
to this ideology, further research suggests that one can satisfy the
fulfillment of their lives by learning the A,B,Cs...
The
beginning of the school year typically marks the end of the Vacation
Bible School season. VBS, as its commonly referred to, is usually a
series of 3-5 day events similar to a day camp provided by many churches
during the summer. Many students look forward to seeing what this
year's theme will be and wonder what kind of craft they may be
encouraged to make. But the thrust of VBS is much more than learning
how to glue sticks together to make an airplane or even learning the
motions to the VBS songs. It is an opportunity for the A,B,Cs to be
reinforced.
You
may be wondering what the alphabet has to do with a Christian day
camp. When children come to a VBS, many of them are exposed to what is
known as the A,B,Cs of becoming a Christian:
A- Admit to God you are a sinner
B-Believe that Jesus is God's son
C-Confess your faith that Jesus is your Savior and Lord
Here's one fun way to look at it:
"A awiki" from Lifeway Christian Resources VBS - Outrigger Island
"A awiki" from Lifeway Christian Resources VBS - Outrigger Island
or maybe this puts it in a better perspective for your learning style:
These
videos are definitely geared towards the younger learners among us,
however, they provide the very important lesson of redemption through
becoming a follower of Jesus that EVERYONE should know. Our
relationship with God is broken because of the sin in our life (A-
Admit). Separation From God - openbible.info
Jesus, the only begotten Son of God, came to restore that relationship
through sacrificing Himself in the most horrific form of death ever
created by man. John 3:1-19 Holman Christian Standard Bible/The Message paraphrase parallel, He died and was seen alive by many people after being in a sealed tomb for three days John 18-20 - HCSB/The Message parallel
(B - Believe). Because we believe that Jesus did all of this to
restore our relationship, we need to tell the world about the saving
love of God and what He has done in our lives because we admitted and
believed Romans 10 - HCSB/The Message parallel (C-Confess).
The songs of Vacation Bible School are just one of the tools used to describe
and explain what Jesus has done for us. You may be familiar with mini
booklet gospel tracts, the Share Your Faith smart phone app, or a puzzle block called the Evangecube.
Each of these provide variety for learning about Jesus to a world that
is filled with a variety of learning styles. People learn in different
ways, but most will learn a concept if it is put in its simplest form.
Salvation is a gift to us. A gift that has a tremendous cost. We don't
have to do anything to get this gift. The price has already been paid.
Believing that Jesus paid the price to restore a relationship with you
is a complex ideology that is provided by a simple process. A process
that is as easy as learning your A,B,Cs...
'Til Tuesday
Serving HIM by serving you,
Randy
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