Devotion: Surrender

Your will be done (Matthew 26:42b).

Could you surrender everything you love and submit completely to God’s will?

Christ’s will was undoubtedly good, yet he surrendered this in order that God’s will be carried out. In his sinless human nature, before he was beaten and tortured, Jesus knew how he was going to be treated. He knew that his body would bear the wrath of God against the sins of the world. When, in the Garden of Gethsemane, he, therefore, asked his father if there was any way out (to remove the cup) but added, ‘Not what I want but what you want’ (Matthew 26:39). The cup was not taken away from Jesus, but he was given strength to take it and drink it until it was empty.

It is from Christ’s example that we too are transformed to live. Just like Jesus, there may be things that we want to do or do not want to do which are not or are God’s will. Our own sinful will, never free of evil, is at war with God’s will. It is therefore imperative that if God’s will is to prevail, we must look upon God as so gracious and us so genuinely accepted by him, that we allow his graciousness to overflow from us.

Confessing our sin and inclination to selfishness, we cannot know or do God’s will by our own strength. We therefore need to ardently and earnestly pray that the Holy Spirit will give us help and mercy, forgiving our shortcomings and transforming our hearts so that we can discern what God’s will is for us. And then to submit to his will.

Jesus’ example teaches us to pray that God’s will be done because as we do so, we are asking for God’s direction in our lives. For when we follow him with gladness, he will lead us in a life of joy and hope and a life without fear.

Holy Spirit, draw us close to the Father, confessing our sins and surrendering to his will for our lives. Bless Hope Evangelical Lutheran Church in Burundi, as they strengthen their relationship with Lutheran churches in nearby countries and, in doing so, are a beacon of light for Christ. Amen

Devotion written by Emile Nkurunziza Bishop of Hope Evangelical Lutheran Church, Burundi.

Prayer Points

We pray for the students who are undertaking the NAPLAN tests in the coming weeks.

We give thanks for the amazing opportunities and experiences the Year 5/6 students had on camp this week and for bringing them home safely.

We pray for the Diep, Gaurano and Gheysar families.

Micah Award

James for showing courage and compassion.

Rachel for showing compassion and service.

School Safety

The school works very hard to provide a safe environment for our students, not only during the school day but also before and after school. The ‘kiss and drop’ zone was created to allow parents to drop their children at the school gate in a safe environment. We have also created two pick up zones to help reduce congestion at pick up times. As parents and caregivers, you can help to keep our students safe by respecting the following guidelines:

• Stay below the 40km/h speed limit around the school.
• Stay below the 50km/h speed limit in surrounding streets
• When dropping children off in the ‘kiss and drop’ zone, please move your vehicle as far forward as possible
• DO NOT park or stop in front of neighbours’ driveways
• DO NOT make U turns in front of the school
• Please show patience and consideration to other road user
  

NAPLAN Testing

Over the next few weeks, the Year 3 and Year 5 students will be undertaking the annual NAPLAN tests. Students in both year levels undertake assessments in numeracy, reading, writing and language conventions (spelling, vocabulary and grammar).

NAPLAN is an important means for the government to assess the skills students are developing, while also providing a valuable resource for the teachers; however, we need to remember that it is only a snapshot of what the students know and understand in specific tested areas at a specific time. The teachers at our school work diligently throughout the year to support the students to learn and develop not only academically, but socially, emotionally, physically and spiritually. Our staff know each student’s gifts and abilities far more intimately than the representation of any single test result. The NAPLAN test does not understand the needs and background of each student; nor does it highlight the many diverse, God-given gifts and skills which each of the students possess. Therefore, it should in no way be used to assess the value of our students. We are proud of every student that is a part of our community, and we wish them God’s blessings and success in everything they do.

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